What is Total Quality Management?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryan, William A.

1996-01-01

Provides a general overview of Total Quality Management (TQM) and explains why there is pressure for change in higher education institutions. Defines TQM and the various themes, tools, and beliefs that make it different from other management approaches. Presents 14 principles and how they might be applied to student affairs. (RJM)

Applying Total Quality Management in Cooperative Extension.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fredendall, Lawrence D.; Lippert, Robert M.

1995-01-01

South Carolina's Agricultural Service Laboratory received responses from 252 of 500 farmers who currently use the soil testing service; 97% were pleased with accuracy, 89% with turnaround time, 18% thought the fee too high. Nonusers (100 of 520) were mainly dissatisfied with turnaround time. Total quality management methods were used to improve…

From the traditional concept of safety management to safety integrated with quality.

PubMed

García Herrero, Susana; Mariscal Saldaña, Miguel Angel; Manzanedo del Campo, Miguel Angel; Ritzel, Dale O

2002-01-01

This editorial reviews the evolution of the concepts of safety and quality that have been used in the traditional workplace. The traditional programs of safety are explored showing strengths and weaknesses. The concept of quality management is also viewed. Safety management and quality management principles, stages, and measurement are highlighted. The concepts of quality and safety guarantee are assessed. Total Quality Management concepts are reviewed and applied to safety quality. Total safety management principles are discussed. Finally, an analysis of the relationship between quality and safety from data collected from a company in Spain is presented.

Quality Management in Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tribus, Myron

When transferring the methods of quality management from industry to academia, there are important differences that must be considered. This paper describes the differences between traditional management and quality management, and shows how Deming's principles of Total Quality Management (TQM) can be applied to education. Some of these principles…

Modelling the impacts of agricultural management practices on river water quality in Eastern England.

PubMed

Taylor, Sam D; He, Yi; Hiscock, Kevin M

2016-09-15

Agricultural diffuse water pollution remains a notable global pressure on water quality, posing risks to aquatic ecosystems, human health and water resources and as a result legislation has been introduced in many parts of the world to protect water bodies. Due to their efficiency and cost-effectiveness, water quality models have been increasingly applied to catchments as Decision Support Tools (DSTs) to identify mitigation options that can be introduced to reduce agricultural diffuse water pollution and improve water quality. In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was applied to the River Wensum catchment in eastern England with the aim of quantifying the long-term impacts of potential changes to agricultural management practices on river water quality. Calibration and validation were successfully performed at a daily time-step against observations of discharge, nitrate and total phosphorus obtained from high-frequency water quality monitoring within the Blackwater sub-catchment, covering an area of 19.6 km(2). A variety of mitigation options were identified and modelled, both singly and in combination, and their long-term effects on nitrate and total phosphorus losses were quantified together with the 95% uncertainty range of model predictions. Results showed that introducing a red clover cover crop to the crop rotation scheme applied within the catchment reduced nitrate losses by 19.6%. Buffer strips of 2 m and 6 m width represented the most effective options to reduce total phosphorus losses, achieving reductions of 12.2% and 16.9%, respectively. This is one of the first studies to quantify the impacts of agricultural mitigation options on long-term water quality for nitrate and total phosphorus at a daily resolution, in addition to providing an estimate of the uncertainties of those impacts. The results highlighted the need to consider multiple pollutants, the degree of uncertainty associated with model predictions and the risk of unintended pollutant impacts when evaluating the effectiveness of mitigation options, and showed that high-frequency water quality datasets can be applied to robustly calibrate water quality models, creating DSTs that are more effective and reliable. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Information Landscaping: Information Mapping, Charting, Querying and Reporting Techniques for Total Quality Knowledge Management.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsai, Bor-sheng

2003-01-01

Total quality management and knowledge management are merged and used as a conceptual model to direct and develop information landscaping techniques through the coordination of information mapping, charting, querying, and reporting. Goals included: merge citation analysis and data mining, and apply data visualization and information architecture…

Total Quality Management in Information Services. Information Services Management Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

St. Clair, Guy

Information services managers have a responsibility to provide the best information delivery possible. The basic principles of total quality management can be used by information professionals to help justify library funding through the creation of an environment where customer-patron satisfaction is paramount. This book reveals how to apply the…

Management Tools in Engineering Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fehr, M.

1999-01-01

Describes a teaching model that applies management tools such as delegation, total quality management, time management, teamwork, and Deming rules. Promotes the advantages of efficiency, reporting, independent scheduling, and quality. (SK)

Speckle reduction in optical coherence tomography by adaptive total variation method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Tong; Shi, Yaoyao; Liu, Youwen; He, Chongjun

2015-12-01

An adaptive total variation method based on the combination of speckle statistics and total variation restoration is proposed and developed for reducing speckle noise in optical coherence tomography (OCT) images. The statistical distribution of the speckle noise in OCT image is investigated and measured. With the measured parameters such as the mean value and variance of the speckle noise, the OCT image is restored by the adaptive total variation restoration method. The adaptive total variation restoration algorithm was applied to the OCT images of a volunteer's hand skin, which showed effective speckle noise reduction and image quality improvement. For image quality comparison, the commonly used median filtering method was also applied to the same images to reduce the speckle noise. The measured results demonstrate the superior performance of the adaptive total variation restoration method in terms of image signal-to-noise ratio, equivalent number of looks, contrast-to-noise ratio, and mean square error.

Quality in Education: An Implementation Handbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arcaro, Jerome S.

This book describes how the principles of quality can be applied to education. Based on the work of W. Edwards Deming and Joseph M. Juran, the book outlines a systematic and practical approach to implementing quality in educational settings. It also describes how to encourage staff participation in quality initiatives. Total-quality schools are…

Evaluation of the psychometric properties of the main meal quality index when applied in the UK population.

PubMed

Gorgulho, B M; Pot, G K; Marchioni, D M

2017-05-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Main Meal Quality Index when applied on the UK population. The indicator was developed to assess meal quality in different populations, and is composed of 10 components: fruit, vegetables (excluding potatoes), ratio of animal protein to total protein, fiber, carbohydrate, total fat, saturated fat, processed meat, sugary beverages and desserts, and energy density, resulting in a score range of 0-100 points. The performance of the indicator was measured using strategies for assessing content validity, construct validity, discriminant validity and reliability, including principal component analysis, linear regression models and Cronbach's alpha. The indicator presented good reliability. The Main Meal Quality Index has been shown to be valid for use as an instrument to evaluate, monitor and compare the quality of meals consumed by adults in the United Kingdom.

Toward a System of Total Quality Management: Applying the Deming Approach to the Education Setting.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLeod, Willis B.; And Others

1992-01-01

Recently, the Petersburg (Virginia) Public Schools have moved away from a highly centralized organizational structure to a Total Quality Management system featuring shared decision making and school-based management practices. The district was guided by Deming's philosophy that all stakeholders should be involved in defining the level of products…

Total Quality Education: Profiles of Schools That Demonstrate the Power of Deming's Management Principles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmoker, Michael J.; Wilson, Richard B.

This book presents profiles of schools that have demonstrated the power of Deming's Total Quality Management (TQM) principles. It describes schools that have successfully applied those strategies for change. The book explores what public education needs most--a compelling but flexible action plan for improvement. Chapter 1 offers a rationale for…

Can Deming's Concept of Total Quality Management Be Applied to Education?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sevick, Charles

This paper explores the meaning of Total Quality Management (TQM), examines the development of the concept, and assesses the application of TQM to education. In summary, TQM has the following points of relevance for education: (1) The interest and welfare of every student must be a primary concern; (2) the authoritarian management model does not…

Total Quality Management and the Higher Education Environment: Impact on Educational Leadership Theory and Practice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Munoz, Marco A.

This paper explores Total Quality Management (TQM) as an organizational theory applied to educational administration of higher education. The first part of the paper describes the principles of TQM, and the second part considers TQM in higher education. The third section is a general conclusion that takes into consideration the leadership…

Total Quality Applied in the Classroom: Students in Virginia Beach Find Early Gains from New Instructional Practices.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konopnicki, Patrick

1996-01-01

After hours of introducing team training, facilitation skills, and Total Quality Management tools, the old classroom practices of "chalk and talk" faded in Virginia Beach schools' technical and career education classes. Academic teachers also improved instruction, using innovative TQM tools such as nominal group voting, course mission…

High-quality poly-dispersed mixtures applied in additive 3D technologies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gerasimov, M. D.; Brazhnik, Yu V.; Gorshkov, P. S.; Latyshev, S. S.

2018-03-01

The paper describes the new mixer design to obtain high-quality poly-dispersed powders applied in additive 3D technologies. It also considers a new mixing principle of dry powder particles ensuring the distribution of such particles in the total volume, which is close to ideal. The paper presents the mathematical model of mixer operation providing for the quality assessment of the ready mixtures. Besides, it demonstrates experimental results and obtained rational values of mixer process parameters.

Towards Total Quality Management in Universities: Quality Function Deployment Paradigm and Beyond

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Fuqaha, Isam Najib

2014-01-01

This paper is an endeavor to develop a customised and computerized matrix of Quality Function Deployment paradigm (QFD) that has been applied in industry, with the aim of probing quality assurance and enhancement in Universities. Results of testing the new matrix proved that, it is efficient and time-saving while compared with a detailed field…

Total Quality Management Master Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-01-01

Enhanced competitiveness in the private . public and international sectors - Increased cash flow, influenced by contractor’s contributions to quality I...the project applies novel public- sector compensation concepts gleaned from the best in the private sector . Major employee development opportunities...management must strive to upgrade the quality of worklife which will also contribute to an environment which fosters continuous improvement. Individuals

Simulation-based optimization framework for reuse of agricultural drainage water in irrigation.

PubMed

Allam, A; Tawfik, A; Yoshimura, C; Fleifle, A

2016-05-01

A simulation-based optimization framework for agricultural drainage water (ADW) reuse has been developed through the integration of a water quality model (QUAL2Kw) and a genetic algorithm. This framework was applied to the Gharbia drain in the Nile Delta, Egypt, in summer and winter 2012. First, the water quantity and quality of the drain was simulated using the QUAL2Kw model. Second, uncertainty analysis and sensitivity analysis based on Monte Carlo simulation were performed to assess QUAL2Kw's performance and to identify the most critical variables for determination of water quality, respectively. Finally, a genetic algorithm was applied to maximize the total reuse quantity from seven reuse locations with the condition not to violate the standards for using mixed water in irrigation. The water quality simulations showed that organic matter concentrations are critical management variables in the Gharbia drain. The uncertainty analysis showed the reliability of QUAL2Kw to simulate water quality and quantity along the drain. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis showed that the 5-day biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, total dissolved solids, total nitrogen and total phosphorous are highly sensitive to point source flow and quality. Additionally, the optimization results revealed that the reuse quantities of ADW can reach 36.3% and 40.4% of the available ADW in the drain during summer and winter, respectively. These quantities meet 30.8% and 29.1% of the drainage basin requirements for fresh irrigation water in the respective seasons. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Surface-water quality in agricultural watersheds of the North Carolina Coastal Plain associated with concentrated animal feeding operations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harden, Stephen L.

2015-01-01

A classification tree model was developed to examine relations of watershed environmental attributes among the study sites with and without CAFO manure effects. Model results indicated that variations in swine barn density, percentage of wetlands, and total acres available for applying swine-waste manures had an important influence on those watersheds where CAFO effects on water quality were either evident or mitigated. Measurable effects of CAFO waste manures on stream water quality were most evident in those SW and SP watersheds having lower percentages of wetlands combined with higher swine barn densities and (or) higher total acres available for applying waste manure at the swine CAFOs. Stream water quality was similar to background agricultural conditions in SW and SP watersheds with lower swine barn densities coupled with higher percentages of wetlands or lower acres available for swine manure applications. The model provides a useful tool for exploring and identifying similar, unmonitored watersheds in the North Carolina Coastal Plain with potential CAFO manure influences on water quality that might warrant further examination.

Multivariate Statistical Approach Applied to Sediment Source Tracking Through Quantification and Mineral Identification, Cheyenne River, South Dakota

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valder, J.; Kenner, S.; Long, A.

2008-12-01

Portions of the Cheyenne River are characterized as impaired by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency because of water-quality exceedences. The Cheyenne River watershed includes the Black Hills National Forest and part of the Badlands National Park. Preliminary analysis indicates that the Badlands National Park is a major contributor to the exceedances of the water-quality constituents for total dissolved solids and total suspended solids. Water-quality data have been collected continuously since 2007, and in the second year of collection (2008), monthly grab and passive sediment samplers are being used to collect total suspended sediment and total dissolved solids in both base-flow and runoff-event conditions. In addition, sediment samples from the river channel, including bed, bank, and floodplain, have been collected. These samples are being analyzed at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology's X-Ray Diffraction Lab to quantify the mineralogy of the sediments. A multivariate statistical approach (including principal components, least squares, and maximum likelihood techniques) is applied to the mineral percentages that were characterized for each site to identify the contributing source areas that are causing exceedances of sediment transport in the Cheyenne River watershed. Results of the multivariate analysis demonstrate the likely sources of solids found in the Cheyenne River samples. A further refinement of the methods is in progress that utilizes a conceptual model which, when applied with the multivariate statistical approach, provides a better estimate for sediment sources.

Increasing productivity through Total Reuse Management (TRM)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schuler, M. P.

1991-01-01

Total Reuse Management (TRM) is a new concept currently being promoted by the NASA Langley Software Engineering and Ada Lab (SEAL). It uses concepts similar to those promoted in Total Quality Management (TQM). Both technical and management personnel are continually encouraged to think in terms of reuse. Reuse is not something that is aimed for after a product is completed, but rather it is built into the product from inception through development. Lowering software development costs, reducing risk, and increasing code reliability are the more prominent goals of TRM. Procedures and methods used to adopt and apply TRM are described. Reuse is frequently thought of as only being applicable to code. However, reuse can apply to all products and all phases of the software life cycle. These products include management and quality assurance plans, designs, and testing procedures. Specific examples of successfully reused products are given and future goals are discussed.

A quality improvement management model for renal care.

PubMed

Vlchek, D L; Day, L M

1991-04-01

The purpose of this article is to explore the potential for applying the theory and tools of quality improvement (total quality management) in the renal care setting. We believe that the coupling of the statistical techniques used in the Deming method of quality improvement, with modern approaches to outcome and process analysis, will provide the renal care community with powerful tools, not only for improved quality (i.e., reduced morbidity and mortality), but also for technology evaluation and resource allocation.

10 CFR 440.12 - State application.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... the method used by the State to insure the quality of work and adequate financial management control... include a copy of the final State plan; (3) The budget for total funds applied for under the Act, which....18(d) for State administration; (4) The total number of dwelling units proposed to be weatherized...

WOMAC and SF-36: instruments for evaluating the health-related quality of life of elderly people with total hip arthroplasty. A descriptive study.

PubMed

Rampazo-Lacativa, Mariana Kátia; Santos, Ariene Angelini dos; Coimbra, Arlete Maria Valente; D'Elboux, Maria José

2015-01-01

Quality-of-life results have increasingly been evaluated among patients undergoing joint replacements. The objective of this study was to compare two assessment instruments for health-related quality of life (one generic and the other specific), among elderly patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty. Cross-sectional descriptive study in a reference hospital in the region of Campinas. The subjects were 88 elderly outpatients aged 60 years or over who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty. Two instruments for assessing health-related quality of life were applied: the generic Medical Study 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) and the specific Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC). Cronbach's alpha and the ceiling and floor effects of the instruments were evaluated. The scores from both instruments showed that issues of a physical nature affected these elderly people's quality of life most. The pain and stiffness dimensions of WOMAC showed ceiling effects and only the functional capacity and pain dimensions of the SF-36 did not show the ceiling effect. The SF-36 presented floor effects in the dimensions of physical and emotional aspects. Cronbach's alpha was considered satisfactory in both instruments (α > 0.70). The floor and ceiling effects that were observed suggest that these instruments may present some limitations in detecting changes to the majority of the SF-36 dimensions, except for functional capacity and pain, and to the pain and stiffness dimensions of WOMAC, when applied to elderly people with total hip arthroplasty.

Listening to the Voice of the Customer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schauerman, Sam; And Others

One of the major tenets of Total Quality Management (TQM) is that organizations need to adopt a strong customer focus. At El Camino College (ECC) in Torrance, California, a matrix was developed to identify and describe ECC's direct and indirect internal and external customers. ECC then applied Quality Function Deployment (QFD), a strategic tool…

The Samurai or the Cowboy? Toward an American Model of Quality Management.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beck, Mark W.

1994-01-01

The Japanese model of business management and Total Quality Management principles being applied to higher education as well as businesses are often ineffective because of the application of packaged ideas without consideration of the subtleties of individual organizations. The cowboy model of teamwork stresses the individual's role and better fits…

Space Station Freedom - Configuration management approach to supporting concurrent engineering and total quality management. [for NASA Space Station Freedom Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gavert, Raymond B.

1990-01-01

Some experiences of NASA configuration management in providing concurrent engineering support to the Space Station Freedom program for the achievement of life cycle benefits and total quality are discussed. Three change decision experiences involving tracing requirements and automated information systems of the electrical power system are described. The potential benefits of concurrent engineering and total quality management include improved operational effectiveness, reduced logistics and support requirements, prevention of schedule slippages, and life cycle cost savings. It is shown how configuration management can influence the benefits attained through disciplined approaches and innovations that compel consideration of all the technical elements of engineering and quality factors that apply to the program development, transition to operations and in operations. Configuration management experiences involving the Space Station program's tiered management structure, the work package contractors, international partners, and the participating NASA centers are discussed.

Importance of implementing an analytical quality control system in a core laboratory.

PubMed

Marques-Garcia, F; Garcia-Codesal, M F; Caro-Narros, M R; Contreras-SanFeliciano, T

2015-01-01

The aim of the clinical laboratory is to provide useful information for screening, diagnosis and monitoring of disease. The laboratory should ensure the quality of extra-analytical and analytical process, based on set criteria. To do this, it develops and implements a system of internal quality control, designed to detect errors, and compare its data with other laboratories, through external quality control. In this way it has a tool to detect the fulfillment of the objectives set, and in case of errors, allowing corrective actions to be made, and ensure the reliability of the results. This article sets out to describe the design and implementation of an internal quality control protocol, as well as its periodical assessment intervals (6 months) to determine compliance with pre-determined specifications (Stockholm Consensus(1)). A total of 40 biochemical and 15 immunochemical methods were evaluated using three different control materials. Next, a standard operation procedure was planned to develop a system of internal quality control that included calculating the error of the analytical process, setting quality specifications, and verifying compliance. The quality control data were then statistically depicted as means, standard deviations, and coefficients of variation, as well as systematic, random, and total errors. The quality specifications were then fixed and the operational rules to apply in the analytical process were calculated. Finally, our data were compared with those of other laboratories through an external quality assurance program. The development of an analytical quality control system is a highly structured process. This should be designed to detect errors that compromise the stability of the analytical process. The laboratory should review its quality indicators, systematic, random and total error at regular intervals, in order to ensure that they are meeting pre-determined specifications, and if not, apply the appropriate corrective actions. Copyright © 2015 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

An innovative index for evaluating water quality in streams.

PubMed

Said, Ahmend; Stevens, David K; Sehlke, Gerald

2004-09-01

A water quality index expressed as a single number is developed to describe overall water quality conditions using multiple water quality variables. The index consists of water quality variables: dissolved oxygen, specific conductivity, turbidity, total phosphorus, and fecal coliform. The objectives of this study were to describe the preexisting indices and to define a new water quality index that has advantages over these indices. The new index was applied to the Big Lost River Watershed in Idaho, and the results gave a quantitative picture for the water quality situation. If the new water quality index for the impaired water is less than a certain number, remediation-likely in the form of total maximum daily loads or changing the management practices-may be needed. The index can be used to assess water quality for general beneficial uses. Nevertheless, the index cannot be used in making regulatory decisions, indicate water quality for specific beneficial uses, or indicate contamination from trace metals, organic contaminants, and toxic substances.

Energy management: total program considers all building's systems.

PubMed

Blan, G J; Browne, K H

1978-09-16

Managing energy consumption, containing fuel usage, and preparing for alternate fuel sources are immediate areas for concern and action for all health care providers. The authors describe how they are meeting the challenge of increased energy costs and reduced availability while maintaining high-quality care by applying the concept of total energy management.

Using multivariate techniques to assess the effects of urbanization on surface water quality: a case study in the Liangjiang New Area, China.

PubMed

Luo, Kun; Hu, Xuebin; He, Qiang; Wu, Zhengsong; Cheng, Hao; Hu, Zhenlong; Mazumder, Asit

2017-04-01

Rapid urbanization in China has been causing dramatic deterioration in the water quality of rivers and threatening aquatic ecosystem health. In this paper, multivariate techniques, such as factor analysis (FA) and cluster analysis (CA), were applied to analyze the water quality datasets for 19 rivers in Liangjiang New Area (LJNA), China, collected in April (dry season) and September (wet season) of 2014 and 2015. In most sampling rivers, total phosphorus, total nitrogen, and fecal coliform exceeded the Class V guideline (GB3838-2002), which could thereby threaten the water quality in Yangtze and Jialing Rivers. FA clearly identified the five groups of water quality variables, which explain majority of the experimental data. Nutritious pollution, seasonal changes, and construction activities were three key factors influencing rivers' water quality in LJNA. CA grouped 19 sampling sites into two clusters, which located at sub-catchments with high- and low-level urbanization, respectively. One-way ANOVA showed the nutrients (total phosphorus, soluble reactive phosphorus, total nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, and nitrite), fecal coliform, and conductivity in cluster 1 were significantly greater than in cluster 2. Thus, catchment urbanization degraded rivers' water quality in Liangjiang New Area. Identifying effective buffer zones at riparian scale to weaken the negative impacts of catchment urbanization was recommended.

Launch vehicle systems design analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ryan, Robert; Verderaime, V.

1993-01-01

Current launch vehicle design emphasis is on low life-cycle cost. This paper applies total quality management (TQM) principles to a conventional systems design analysis process to provide low-cost, high-reliability designs. Suggested TQM techniques include Steward's systems information flow matrix method, quality leverage principle, quality through robustness and function deployment, Pareto's principle, Pugh's selection and enhancement criteria, and other design process procedures. TQM quality performance at least-cost can be realized through competent concurrent engineering teams and brilliance of their technical leadership.

Systems Science in Support of Total Quality Management,

DTIC Science & Technology

Quality Management (TQM). This paper bridges the gap between these two subjects to illustrate specific means by which systems science can begin to augment TQM. This construction is based upon the consideration of two topics. First, a brief introduction to systems science is provided. Second, systems science is applied through the concept of the Conant-Ashby

Efficiency vs. Effectiveness: Can W. Edwards Deming's Principles of Quality Management Be Applied Successfully to American Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petry, John R.

The field of education has been slow to recognize the Total Quality Management (TQM) concept. This resistance may result from entrenched management styles characterized by hierarchical decision-making structures. TQM emphasizes management based on leadership instead of management by objective, command, and coercion. The TQM concept consists of…

Restoring water quality in the polluted Turag-Tongi-Balu river system, Dhaka: Modelling nutrient and total coliform intervention strategies.

PubMed

Whitehead, Paul; Bussi, Gianbattista; Hossain, Mohammed Abed; Dolk, Michaela; Das, Partho; Comber, Sean; Peters, Rebecca; Charles, Katrina J; Hope, Rob; Hossain, Md Sarwar

2018-08-01

River water quality in rapidly urbanising Asian cities threatens to damage the resource base on which human health, economic growth and poverty reduction all depend. Dhaka reflects the challenges and opportunities for balancing these dynamic and complex trade-offs which goals can be achieved through effective policy interventions. There is a serious problem of water pollution in central Dhaka, in the Turag-Tongi-Balu River system in Bangladesh with the river system being one of the most polluted in the world at the moment. A baseline survey of water chemistry and total coliforms has been undertaken and shows dissolved oxygen close to zero in the dry season, high organic loading together with extreme levels of Ammonium-N and total coliform in the water. Models have been applied to assess hydrochemical processes in the river and evaluate alternative strategies for policy and the management of the pollution issues. In particular models of flow, Nitrate-N, Ammonium-N and indicator bacteria (total coliforms) are applied to simulate water quality in the river system. Various scenarios are explored to clean up the river system, including flow augmentation and improved effluent treatment. The model results indicate that improved effluent treatment is likely to have a more significant impact on reducing Ammonium-N and total coliforms than flow augmentation, but a combined strategy would greatly reduce the pollution problems in the Turag-Tongi-Balu River System. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Development of Software Sensors for Determining Total Phosphorus and Total Nitrogen in Waters

PubMed Central

Lee, Eunhyoung; Han, Sanghoon; Kim, Hyunook

2013-01-01

Total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations are important parameters to assess the quality of water bodies and are used as criteria to regulate the water quality of the effluent from a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Korea. Therefore, continuous monitoring of TN and TP using in situ instruments is conducted nationwide in Korea. However, most in situ instruments in the market are expensive and require a time-consuming sample pretreatment step, which hinders the widespread use of in situ TN and TP monitoring. In this study, therefore, software sensors based on multiple-regression with a few easily in situ measurable water quality parameters were applied to estimate the TN and TP concentrations in a stream, a lake, combined sewer overflows (CSOs), and WWTP effluent. In general, the developed software sensors predicted TN and TP concentrations of the WWTP effluent and CSOs reasonably well. However, they showed relatively lower predictability for TN and TP concentrations of stream and lake waters, possibly because the water quality of stream and lake waters is more variable than that of WWTP effluent or CSOs. PMID:23307350

Estimation of urban runoff and water quality using remote sensing and artificial intelligence.

PubMed

Ha, S R; Park, S Y; Park, D H

2003-01-01

Water quality and quantity of runoff are strongly dependent on the landuse and landcover (LULC) criteria. In this study, we developed a more improved parameter estimation procedure for the environmental model using remote sensing (RS) and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques. Landsat TM multi-band (7bands) and Korea Multi-Purpose Satellite (KOMPSAT) panchromatic data were selected for input data processing. We employed two kinds of artificial intelligence techniques, RBF-NN (radial-basis-function neural network) and ANN (artificial neural network), to classify LULC of the study area. A bootstrap resampling method, a statistical technique, was employed to generate the confidence intervals and distribution of the unit load. SWMM was used to simulate the urban runoff and water quality and applied to the study watershed. The condition of urban flow and non-point contaminations was simulated with rainfall-runoff and measured water quality data. The estimated total runoff, peak time, and pollutant generation varied considerably according to the classification accuracy and percentile unit load applied. The proposed procedure would efficiently be applied to water quality and runoff simulation in a rapidly changing urban area.

Land Use Land Cover Changes in Detection of Water Quality: A Study Based on Remote Sensing and Multivariate Statistics.

PubMed

Hua, Ang Kean

2017-01-01

Malacca River water quality is affected due to rapid urbanization development. The present study applied LULC changes towards water quality detection in Malacca River. The method uses LULC, PCA, CCA, HCA, NHCA, and ANOVA. PCA confirmed DS, EC, salinity, turbidity, TSS, DO, BOD, COD, As, Hg, Zn, Fe, E. coli , and total coliform. CCA confirmed 14 variables into two variates; first variate involves residential and industrial activities; and second variate involves agriculture, sewage treatment plant, and animal husbandry. HCA and NHCA emphasize that cluster 1 occurs in urban area with Hg, Fe, total coliform, and DO pollution; cluster 3 occurs in suburban area with salinity, EC, and DS; and cluster 2 occurs in rural area with salinity and EC. ANOVA between LULC and water quality data indicates that built-up area significantly polluted the water quality through E. coli , total coliform, EC, BOD, COD, TSS, Hg, Zn, and Fe, while agriculture activities cause EC, TSS, salinity, E. coli , total coliform, arsenic, and iron pollution; and open space causes contamination of turbidity, salinity, EC, and TSS. Research finding provided useful information in identifying pollution sources and understanding LULC with river water quality as references to policy maker for proper management of Land Use area.

Evaluating the effectiveness of management practices on hydrology and water quality at watershed scale with a rainfall-runoff model.

PubMed

Liu, Yaoze; Bralts, Vincent F; Engel, Bernard A

2015-04-01

The adverse influence of urban development on hydrology and water quality can be reduced by applying best management practices (BMPs) and low impact development (LID) practices. This study applied green roof, rain barrel/cistern, bioretention system, porous pavement, permeable patio, grass strip, grassed swale, wetland channel, retention pond, detention basin, and wetland basin, on Crooked Creek watershed. The model was calibrated and validated for annual runoff volume. A framework for simulating BMPs and LID practices at watershed scales was created, and the impacts of BMPs and LID practices on water quantity and water quality were evaluated with the Long-Term Hydrologic Impact Assessment-Low Impact Development 2.1 (L-THIA-LID 2.1) model for 16 scenarios. The various levels and combinations of BMPs/LID practices reduced runoff volume by 0 to 26.47%, Total Nitrogen (TN) by 0.30 to 34.20%, Total Phosphorus (TP) by 0.27 to 47.41%, Total Suspended Solids (TSS) by 0.33 to 53.59%, Lead (Pb) by 0.30 to 60.98%, Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) by 0 to 26.70%, and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) by 0 to 27.52%. The implementation of grass strips in 25% of the watershed where this practice could be applied was the most cost-efficient scenario, with cost per unit reduction of $1m3/yr for runoff, while cost for reductions of two pollutants of concern was $445 kg/yr for Total Nitrogen (TN) and $4871 kg/yr for Total Phosphorous (TP). The scenario with very high levels of BMP and LID practice adoption (scenario 15) reduced runoff volume and pollutant loads from 26.47% to 60.98%, and provided the greatest reduction in runoff volume and pollutant loads among all scenarios. However, this scenario was not as cost-efficient as most other scenarios. The L-THIA-LID 2.1 model is a valid tool that can be applied to various locations to help identify cost effective BMP/LID practice plans at watershed scales. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How To Improve the Quality of Our Organizations through the Use of TQM, Continuous Improvement Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coates, James

As a result of global competition in business, Total Quality Management (TQM) has been seen as necessary to provide competitive products and services that customers want and need at attractive prices. In applying the principles of TQM to higher education, however, the perceived need for survival and competition in business and industry does not…

Effect of UV-C treatment on inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7, microbial loads, and quality of button mushrooms

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This study investigated the effects of ultraviolet-C (UV-C) light applied to both sides of mushrooms on microbial loads and product quality during storage for 21 days at 4 C. Microflora populations, color, antioxidant activity, total phenolics, and ascorbic acid were measured at 1, 7, 14 and 21 days...

Rapid and Accurate Evaluation of the Quality of Commercial Organic Fertilizers Using Near Infrared Spectroscopy

PubMed Central

Wang, Chang; Huang, Chichao; Qian, Jian; Xiao, Jian; Li, Huan; Wen, Yongli; He, Xinhua; Ran, Wei; Shen, Qirong; Yu, Guanghui

2014-01-01

The composting industry has been growing rapidly in China because of a boom in the animal industry. Therefore, a rapid and accurate assessment of the quality of commercial organic fertilizers is of the utmost importance. In this study, a novel technique that combines near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy with partial least squares (PLS) analysis is developed for rapidly and accurately assessing commercial organic fertilizers quality. A total of 104 commercial organic fertilizers were collected from full-scale compost factories in Jiangsu Province, east China. In general, the NIR-PLS technique showed accurate predictions of the total organic matter, water soluble organic nitrogen, pH, and germination index; less accurate results of the moisture, total nitrogen, and electrical conductivity; and the least accurate results for water soluble organic carbon. Our results suggested the combined NIR-PLS technique could be applied as a valuable tool to rapidly and accurately assess the quality of commercial organic fertilizers. PMID:24586313

Rapid and accurate evaluation of the quality of commercial organic fertilizers using near infrared spectroscopy.

PubMed

Wang, Chang; Huang, Chichao; Qian, Jian; Xiao, Jian; Li, Huan; Wen, Yongli; He, Xinhua; Ran, Wei; Shen, Qirong; Yu, Guanghui

2014-01-01

The composting industry has been growing rapidly in China because of a boom in the animal industry. Therefore, a rapid and accurate assessment of the quality of commercial organic fertilizers is of the utmost importance. In this study, a novel technique that combines near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy with partial least squares (PLS) analysis is developed for rapidly and accurately assessing commercial organic fertilizers quality. A total of 104 commercial organic fertilizers were collected from full-scale compost factories in Jiangsu Province, east China. In general, the NIR-PLS technique showed accurate predictions of the total organic matter, water soluble organic nitrogen, pH, and germination index; less accurate results of the moisture, total nitrogen, and electrical conductivity; and the least accurate results for water soluble organic carbon. Our results suggested the combined NIR-PLS technique could be applied as a valuable tool to rapidly and accurately assess the quality of commercial organic fertilizers.

THE DISTRIBUTION OF CHLORPYRIFOSIN AIR, CARPETING, AND DUST AND ITS REEMISSION FROM CARPETING FOLLOWING THE USE OF TOTAL RELEASE AEROSOLS IN AN INDOOR AIR QUALITY TEST HOUSE

EPA Science Inventory

The paper gives results of experiments to explore the relationships between the insecticide chlorpyrifos and its distribution into carpet., carpet dust, and reemission into air. Two total release aerosols containing 0.5% chlorpyrifos were applied in the living room and den of EP...

The Application of Active Paper Incorporated with Oleoresin of Cinnamon Leaf (Cinnamomum burmanii) Distillation Residues on Maintaining Dragon Fruits (Hylocereus costaricensis) Quality during Storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aziz, M. S. H.; Manuhara, G. J.; Utami, R.; Khasanah, L. U.

2018-03-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of active paper placement methods on super red dragon fruits quality during storage at ambient temperature. The active papers were incorporated with oleoresin of cinnamon leaf distillation residues. Various active paper placement methods were applied such as wrapping, placed on the cardboard wall, placed cardboard pad, and scrap of paper on the sidelines. Weight loss, peel color, surface and flesh hardness, total titratable acid, soluble solid total, pH flesh fruit, and total plate count (TPC) of super red dragon fruits samples were investigated during 9 days storage. The result shows that active paper placement methods significantly affected the weight loss, surface firmness and color peel change of super red dragon fruits samples. However, active paper placement methods insignificantly affected the titrable acid total, soluble solid total, pH, flesh firmness and microbial spoilage of super red dragon fruits samples. The best method to maintain the super red dragon fruits quality was wrapping method.

Interest and limits of the six sigma methodology in medical laboratory.

PubMed

Scherrer, Florian; Bouilloux, Jean-Pierre; Calendini, Ors'Anton; Chamard, Didier; Cornu, François

2017-02-01

The mandatory accreditation of clinical laboratories in France provides an incentive to develop real tools to measure performance management methods and to optimize the management of internal quality controls. Six sigma methodology is an approach commonly applied to software quality management and discussed in numerous publications. This paper discusses the primary factors that influence the sigma index (the choice of the total allowable error, the approach used to address bias) and compares the performance of different analyzers on the basis of the sigma index. Six sigma strategy can be applied to the policy management of internal quality control in a laboratory and demonstrates through a comparison of four analyzers that there is no single superior analyzer in clinical chemistry. Similar sigma results are obtained using approaches toward bias based on the EQAS or the IQC. The main difficulty in using the six sigma methodology lies in the absence of official guidelines for the definition of the total error acceptable. Despite this drawback, our comparison study suggests that difficulties with defined analytes do not vary with the analyzer used.

Simulating ensembles of source water quality using a K-nearest neighbor resampling approach.

PubMed

Towler, Erin; Rajagopalan, Balaji; Seidel, Chad; Summers, R Scott

2009-03-01

Climatological, geological, and water management factors can cause significant variability in surface water quality. As drinking water quality standards become more stringent, the ability to quantify the variability of source water quality becomes more important for decision-making and planning in water treatment for regulatory compliance. However, paucity of long-term water quality data makes it challenging to apply traditional simulation techniques. To overcome this limitation, we have developed and applied a robust nonparametric K-nearest neighbor (K-nn) bootstrap approach utilizing the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Information Collection Rule (ICR) data. In this technique, first an appropriate "feature vector" is formed from the best available explanatory variables. The nearest neighbors to the feature vector are identified from the ICR data and are resampled using a weight function. Repetition of this results in water quality ensembles, and consequently the distribution and the quantification of the variability. The main strengths of the approach are its flexibility, simplicity, and the ability to use a large amount of spatial data with limited temporal extent to provide water quality ensembles for any given location. We demonstrate this approach by applying it to simulate monthly ensembles of total organic carbon for two utilities in the U.S. with very different watersheds and to alkalinity and bromide at two other U.S. utilities.

Applying Quality Management Process-Improvement Principles to Learning in Reading Courses: An Improved Learning and Retention Method.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hahn, William G.; Bart, Barbara D.

2003-01-01

Business students were taught a total quality management-based outlining process for course readings and a tally method to measure learning efficiency. Comparison of 233 who used the process and 99 who did not showed that the group means of users' test scores were 12.4 points higher than those of nonusers. (Contains 25 references.) (SK)

Modelling total suspended solids, E. coli and carbamazepine, a tracer of wastewater contamination from combined sewer overflows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pongmala, Khemngeun; Autixier, Laurène; Madoux-Humery, Anne-Sophie; Fuamba, Musandji; Galarneau, Martine; Sauvé, Sébastien; Prévost, Michèle; Dorner, Sarah

2015-12-01

Urban source water protection requires knowledge of sources of fecal contamination upstream of drinking water intakes. Combined and sanitary sewer overflows (CSOs and SSOs) are primary sources of microbiological contamination and wastewater micropollutants (WWMPs) in urban water supplies. To quantify the impact of sewer overflows, predictive simulation models are required and have not been widely applied for microbial contaminants such as fecal indicator bacteria and pathogens in urban drainage networks. The objective of this study was to apply a simulation model to estimate the dynamics of three contaminants in sewer overflows - total suspended solids, Escherichia coli (E. coli) and carbamazepine, a WWMP. A mixed combined and pseudo-sanitary drainage network in Québec, Canada was studied and modelled for a total of 7 events for which water quality data were available. Model results were significantly correlated with field water quality data. The model confirmed that the contributions of E. coli from runoff and sewer deposits were minor and their dominant source was from sewage. In contrast, the main sources of total suspended solids were stormwater runoff and sewer resuspension. Given that it is not present in stormwater, carbamazepine was found to be a useful stable tracer of sewage contributions to total contaminant loads and also provided an indication of the fraction of total suspended solids originating from sewer deposits because of its similar response to increasing flowrates.

The relationship of sleep problems to life quality and depression

PubMed Central

Sarıarslan, Hacı A.; Gulhan, Yıldırım B.; Unalan, Demet; Basturk, Mustafa; Delibas, Senol

2015-01-01

Objective: To identify the level of depression, the level of life quality, and the relationship between these, in patients applying to sleep centers for various sleep problems. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 229 patients who applied for polysomnography at sleeping centers under supervision of the Neurology and Chest Diseases Clinics of Kayseri Education and Research Hospital, Kayseri, Turkey between June and August 2013. The data collection tools were a socio-demographical data form, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF). For statistical analyses, the Student t-test, Kruskal-Wallis-variant analysis, and chi-square tests were used. Significance level was considered as p<0.05. Results: In our study, patients who were older aged, married, not working, and who had a chronic disease, and a severe depressive symptom were observed to have significantly poorer sleep quality. While patients with any chronic disease had significantly higher scores for total PSQI and depression, their physical, mental, and social WHOQOL-BREF scores were significantly lower. The PSQI total scores, and depression scores of the smoking patients were significantly higher for physical, mental, and social WHOQOL-BREF fields. There was a positive correlation between PSQI scores and BDI scores while there was a negative correlation among BDI, PSQI, and WHOQOL-BREF life quality sub-scale scores. Conclusions: Sleep quality was significantly poorer in patients who were older aged, married, not working, and who had a chronic disease, and a severe depressive symptom. There was a significantly negative correlation among depression, sleep quality, and life quality, while there was a significantly positive correlation between life quality and depression. PMID:26166591

Implementation and implication of total quality management on client- contractor relationship in residential projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murali, Swetha; Ponmalar, V.

2017-07-01

To make innovation and continuous improvement as a norm, some traditional practices must become unlearnt. Change for growth and competitiveness are required for sustainability for any profitable business such as the construction industry. The leading companies are willing to implement Total Quality Management (TQM) principles, to realise potential advantages and improve growth and efficiency. Ironically, researches recollected quality as the most significant provider for competitive advantage in industrial leadership. The two objectives of this paper are 1) Identify TQM effectiveness in residential projects and 2) Identify the client satisfaction/dissatisfaction areas using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and suggest effective mitigate measures. Using statistical survey techniques like set of questionnaire survey, it is observed that total quality management was applied in some leading successful organization to an extent. The main attributes for quality achievement can be defined as teamwork and better communication with single agreed goal between client and contractor. Onsite safety is a paramount attribute in the identifying quality within the residential projects. It was noticed that the process based quality methods such as onsite safe working condition; safe management system and modern engineering process safety controls etc. as interlinked functions. Training and effective communication with all stakeholders on quality management principles is essential for effective quality work. Late Only through effective TQM principles companies can avoid some contract litigations with an increased client satisfaction Index.

Terahertz time-domain attenuated total reflection spectroscopy applied to the rapid discrimination of the botanical origin of honeys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Wen; Zhang, Yuying; Yang, Si; Han, Donghai

2018-05-01

A new technique to identify the floral resources of honeys is demanded. Terahertz time-domain attenuated total reflection spectroscopy combined with chemometrics methods was applied to discriminate different categorizes (Medlar honey, Vitex honey, and Acacia honey). Principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) have been used to find information of the botanical origins of honeys. Spectral range also was discussed to increase the precision of PLS-DA model. The accuracy of 88.46% for validation set was obtained, using PLS-DA model in 0.5-1.5 THz. This work indicated terahertz time-domain attenuated total reflection spectroscopy was an available approach to evaluate the quality of honey rapidly.

Quality of tomato slices disinfected with ozonated water.

PubMed

Aguayo, Encarna; Escalona, Víctor; Silveira, Ana Cecilia; Artés, Francisco

2014-04-01

Fresh-cut industry needs novel disinfectant to replace the use of chlorine. Ozone is one of the most powerful oxidizing agents and is applied in gaseous or aqueous form for sanitation purposes. However, the strong oxidative effect could affect the nutritional and sensorial quality, in particular, when time of washing is extended. For that reason, the overall impact of ozonated water (0.4 mg/L) dipping applied during 1, 3 and 5 min compared to control washed in water during 5 min was studied in tomato slices stored during 14 days at 5 . According to the results, ozonated water treatment of 3 min achieved the best firmness retention, microbial quality (mesophilic, psychrotrophic and yeas load) and reduced the consumption of fructose and glucose. The use of ozonated water did not affect the total acidity, pH, total solid soluble, organic acid as ascorbic, fumaric or succinic acid and the sensorial parameters, which were only affected by storage time. However, the poor appearance, aroma and overall quality obtained in all treatments prevented shelf life of 14 days and the quality at acceptable levels was established in 10 days at 5 . It is recommended to wash tomato slices with 0.4 mg/L ozonated water for 3 min only. Extending treatment duration did not improve the microbiological quality, possibly due to the extra time permitting the ozone to react with other components of the fruit tissue, undermining the antimicrobial benefits.

[Care quality in intensive care evaluated by the patients using a service quality scale (SERVQUAL)].

PubMed

Regaira Martínez, E; Sola Iriarte, M; Goñi Viguria, R; Del Barrio Linares, M; Margall Coscojuela, M A; Asiain Erro, M C

2010-01-01

The evaluation made by the patients on the quality of service received is important to introduce improvement strategies in the care quality. 1. To evaluate the care quality through the analysis of the differences obtained between expectations and perceptions, that the patients have of the service received in the ICU. 2. To analyze if there is any relationship between care quality evaluated by the patients and the sociodemographic variables. A total of 86 patients who were conscious and oriented during their stay in the ICU were studied prospectively. At 24h of the discharge from the ICU, the SERVQUAL (Service Quality) scale, adapted for the hospital setting by Babakus and Mangold (1992), was applied. This scale measures the care quality based on the difference in scores obtained between expectations and perceptions of the patients. The positive scores indicate that the perceptions of the patients exceed their expectations. The scale has 5 dimensions: Tangibility, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurances and Empathy. It includes 15 items for perceptions and the same for expectations, with 5 grades of response (1 totally disagree - 5 totally agree). The mean score of perceptions 66.92) exceeded that of the expectations (62.30). The mean score of the difference between perceptions and expectations for the total of the SERVQUAL scale was 4.62. It was also positive for each one of the dimensions: Tangibility=1.44, Reliability=0.53, Responsiveness=0.95, Assurances=0.99, Empathy=0.71. No statistically significant associations were found between care quality evaluated by the patients and the sociodemographic variables. The care quality perceived by the patients in the ICU exceeds their expectations, and had no relationship with the sociodemographic characteristics. Copyright 2009 Elsevier España, S.L. y SEEIUC. All rights reserved.

[Potential for the survey of quality indicators based on a national emergency department registry : A systematic literature search].

PubMed

Hörster, A C; Kulla, M; Brammen, D; Lefering, R

2018-06-01

Emergency department processes are often key for successful treatment. Therefore, collection of quality indicators is demanded. A basis for the collection is systematic, electronic documentation. The development of paper-based documentation into an electronic and interoperable national emergency registry is-besides the establishment of quality management for emergency departments-a target of the AKTIN project. The objective of this research is identification of internationally applied quality indicators. For the investigation of the current status of quality management in emergency departments based on quality indicators, a systematic literature search of the database PubMed, the Cochrane Library and the internet was performed. Of the 170 internationally applied quality indicators, 25 with at least two references are identified. A total of 10 quality indicators are ascertainable by the data set. An enlargement of the data set will enable the collection of seven further quality indicators. The implementation of data of care behind the emergency processes will provide eight additional quality indicators. This work was able to show that the potential of a national emergency registry for the establishment of quality indicators corresponds with the international systems taken into consideration and could provide a comparable collection of quality indicators.

Determination of total Cr in wastewaters of Cr electroplating factories in the I.organize industry region (Kayseri, Turkey) by ICP-AES.

PubMed

Yilmaz, Selehattin; Türe, Melike; Sadikoglu, Murat; Duran, Ali

2010-08-01

The wastewater pollution in industrial areas is one of the most important environmental problems. Heavy metal pollution, especially chromium pollution in the wastewater sources from electroplating, dyeing, and tannery, has affected the life on earth. This pollution can affect on all ecosystems and human health directly or by food chain. Therefore, the determination of total chromium in this study is of great importance. In this study, accurate, rapid, sensitive, selective, simple, and low-cost technique for the direct determination of total Cr in wastewater samples collected from the some Cr electroplating factories in March 2008 by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry has been developed. The analysis of a given sample is completed in about 15 min by this technique applied. As the result of the chromium analysis, the limit of quantification for the total Cr were founded to be over the limit value (0.05 mg L(-1); WHO, EPA, TSE 266, and inland water quality classification) as 1,898.78+/-0.34 mg/L at station 1 and 3,189.02+/-0.56 mg/L at station 2. The found concentration of total Cr has been determined to be IV class quality water according to the inland water classification. In order to validate the applied method, recovery studies were performed.

Job-shop scheduling applied to computer vision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sebastian y Zuniga, Jose M.; Torres-Medina, Fernando; Aracil, Rafael; Reinoso, Oscar; Jimenez, Luis M.; Garcia, David

1997-09-01

This paper presents a method for minimizing the total elapsed time spent by n tasks running on m differents processors working in parallel. The developed algorithm not only minimizes the total elapsed time but also reduces the idle time and waiting time of in-process tasks. This condition is very important in some applications of computer vision in which the time to finish the total process is particularly critical -- quality control in industrial inspection, real- time computer vision, guided robots. The scheduling algorithm is based on the use of two matrices, obtained from the precedence relationships between tasks, and the data obtained from the two matrices. The developed scheduling algorithm has been tested in one application of quality control using computer vision. The results obtained have been satisfactory in the application of different image processing algorithms.

Evaluation of water quality and stability in the drinking water distribution network in the Azogues city, Ecuador.

PubMed

García-Ávila, Fernando; Ramos-Fernández, Lía; Pauta, Damián; Quezada, Diego

2018-06-01

This document presents the physical-chemical parameters with the objective of evaluating and analyzing the drinking water quality in the Azogues city applying the water quality index (WQI) and to research the water stability in the distribution network using corrosion indexes. Thirty samples were collected monthly for six months throughout the drinking water distribution network; turbidity, temperature, electric conductivity, pH, total dissolved solids, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, alkalinity, chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and phosphates were determined; the physical-chemical parameters were measured using standard methods. The processed data revealed that the average values ​​of LSI, RSI and PSI were 0.5 (±0.34), 6.76 (±0.6), 6.50 (±0.99) respectively. The WQI calculation indicated that 100% of the samples are considered excellent quality water. According to the Langelier, Ryznar and Pukorius indexes showed that drinking water in Azogues is corrosive. The quality of drinking water according to the WQI is in a good and excellent category.

The TOMS V9 Algorithm for OMPS Nadir Mapper Total Ozone: An Enhanced Design That Ensures Data Continuity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haffner, D. P.; McPeters, R. D.; Bhartia, P. K.; Labow, G. J.

2015-12-01

The TOMS V9 total ozone algorithm will be applied to the OMPS Nadir Mapper instrument to supersede the exisiting V8.6 data product in operational processing and re-processing for public release. Becuase the quality of the V8.6 data is already quite high, enchancements in V9 are mainly with information provided by the retrieval and simplifcations to the algorithm. The design of the V9 algorithm has been influenced by improvements both in our knowledge of atmospheric effects, such as those of clouds made possible by studies with OMI, and also limitations in the V8 algorithms applied to both OMI and OMPS. But the namesake instruments of the TOMS algorithm are substantially more limited in their spectral and noise characterisitics, and a requirement of our algorithm is to also apply the algorithm to these discrete band spectrometers which date back to 1978. To achieve continuity for all these instruments, the TOMS V9 algorithm continues to use radiances in discrete bands, but now uses Rodgers optimal estimation to retrieve a coarse profile and provide uncertainties for each retrieval. The algorithm remains capable of achieving high accuracy results with a small number of discrete wavelengths, and in extreme cases, such as unusual profile shapes and high solar zenith angles, the quality of the retrievals is improved. Despite the intended design to use limited wavlenegths, the algorithm can also utilitze additional wavelengths from hyperspectral sensors like OMPS to augment the retreival's error detection and information content; for example SO2 detection and correction of Ring effect on atmospheric radiances. We discuss these and other aspects of the V9 algorithm as it will be applied to OMPS, and will mention potential improvements which aim to take advantage of a synergy with OMPS Limb Profiler and Nadir Mapper to further improve the quality of total ozone from the OMPS instrument.

Autonomous motivation and quality of life as predictors of physical activity in patients with schizophrenia.

PubMed

Costa, Raquel; Bastos, Tânia; Probst, Michel; Seabra, André; Vilhena, Estela; Corredeira, Rui

2018-02-08

Being physically active is a complex behaviour in patients with schizophrenia. Several factors were identified as barriers to achieving active behaviours in this population. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate among a number of barriers what predicts the most on physical activity (PA) in patients with schizophrenia. A total of 114 patients (28♀) with schizophrenia were included. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Autonomous and controlled motivation (Behavioural Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire - 3), self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-esteem scale), quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale - Brief version) and functional exercise capacity (6-minute walk test - 6MWT) were evaluated. Multiple Regression Analysis was applied to assess the effect of these variables on Total PA per week (International Physical Activity Questionnaire - short version). Autonomous motivation and domains of quality of life were positively correlated with Total PA per week. Stepwise multiple regression analyses showed that of all the candidate factors to predict PA, autonomous motivation and global domain of quality of life were found as significant predictors. Our findings help to understand the importance of autonomous motivation and quality of life for PA in patients with schizophrenia. Knowledge about these predictors may provide guidance to improve PA behaviour in this population.

Changes in mineral elements and starch quality of grains during the improvement of japonica rice cultivars.

PubMed

Zhang, Hao; Yu, Chao; Hou, Danping; Liu, Hailang; Zhang, Huiting; Tao, Rongrong; Cai, Han; Gu, Junfei; Liu, Lijun; Zhang, Zujian; Wang, Zhiqin; Yang, Jianchang

2018-01-01

The improvement of rice cultivars plays an important role in yield increase. However, little is known about the changes in starch quality and mineral elements during the improvement of rice cultivars. This study was conducted to investigate the changes in starch quality and mineral elements in japonica rice cultivars. Twelve typical rice cultivars, applied in the production in Jiangsu province during the last 60 years, were grown in the paddy fields. These cultivars were classified into six types according to their application times, plant types and genotypes. The nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and, and potassium (K) were mainly distributed in endosperm, bran and bran, respectively. Secondary and micromineral nutrients were distributed throughout grains. With the improvement of cultivars, total N contents gradually decreased, while total P, K and magnesium contents increased in grains. Total copper and zinc contents in type 80'S in grains were highest. The improvement of cultivars enhanced palatability (better gelatinisation enthalpy and amylose content), taste (better protein content) and protein quality (better protein components and essential amino acids). Correlation analysis indicated the close relationship between mineral elements and starch quality. The mineral elements and starch quality of grains during the improvement of japonica rice cultivars are improved. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

[An evaluation of the quality of health web pages using a validated questionnaire].

PubMed

Conesa Fuentes, Maria del Carmen; Aguinaga Ontoso, Enrique; Hernández Morante, Juan José

2011-01-01

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the quality of general health information in Spanish language web pages, and the official Regional Services web pages from the different Autonomous Regions. It is a cross-sectional study. We have used a previously validated questionnaire to study the present state of the health information on Internet for a lay-user point of view. By mean of PageRank (Google®), we obtained a group of webs, including a total of 65 health web pages. We applied some exclusion criteria, and finally obtained a total of 36 webs. We also analyzed the official web pages from the different Health Services in Spain (19 webs), making a total of 54 health web pages. In the light of our data, we observed that, the quality of the general information health web pages was generally rather low, especially regarding the information quality. Not one page reached the maximum score (19 points). The mean score of the web pages was of 9.8±2.8. In conclusion, to avoid the problems arising from the lack of quality, health professionals should design advertising campaigns and other media to teach the lay-user how to evaluate the information quality. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

Systems design analysis applied to launch vehicle configuration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ryan, R.; Verderaime, V.

1993-01-01

As emphasis shifts from optimum-performance aerospace systems to least lift-cycle costs, systems designs must seek, adapt, and innovate cost improvement techniques in design through operations. The systems design process of concept, definition, and design was assessed for the types and flow of total quality management techniques that may be applicable in a launch vehicle systems design analysis. Techniques discussed are task ordering, quality leverage, concurrent engineering, Pareto's principle, robustness, quality function deployment, criteria, and others. These cost oriented techniques are as applicable to aerospace systems design analysis as to any large commercial system.

Ecologic regression analysis and the study of the influence of air quality on mortality.

PubMed Central

Selvin, S; Merrill, D; Wong, L; Sacks, S T

1984-01-01

This presentation focuses entirely on the use and evaluation of regression analysis applied to ecologic data as a method to study the effects of ambient air pollution on mortality rates. Using extensive national data on mortality, air quality and socio-economic status regression analyses are used to study the influence of air quality on mortality. The analytic methods and data are selected in such a way that direct comparisons can be made with other ecologic regression studies of mortality and air quality. Analyses are performed by use of two types of geographic areas, age-specific mortality of both males and females and three pollutants (total suspended particulates, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide). The overall results indicate no persuasive evidence exists of a link between air quality and general mortality levels. Additionally, a lack of consistency between the present results and previous published work is noted. Overall, it is concluded that linear regression analysis applied to nationally collected ecologic data cannot be used to usefully infer a causal relationship between air quality and mortality which is in direct contradiction to other major published studies. PMID:6734568

Application of Statistical Quality Control Techniques to Detonator Fabrication: Feasibility Study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jones, J. Frank

1971-05-20

A feasibility study was performed on the use of process control techniques which might reduce the need for a duplicate inspection by production inspection and quality control inspection. Two active detonator fabrication programs were selected for the study. Inspection areas accounting for the greatest percentage of total inspection costs were selected by applying "Pareto's Principle of Maldistribution." Data from these areas were then gathered and analyzed by a process capabiltiy study.

Edge guided image reconstruction in linear scan CT by weighted alternating direction TV minimization.

PubMed

Cai, Ailong; Wang, Linyuan; Zhang, Hanming; Yan, Bin; Li, Lei; Xi, Xiaoqi; Li, Jianxin

2014-01-01

Linear scan computed tomography (CT) is a promising imaging configuration with high scanning efficiency while the data set is under-sampled and angularly limited for which high quality image reconstruction is challenging. In this work, an edge guided total variation minimization reconstruction (EGTVM) algorithm is developed in dealing with this problem. The proposed method is modeled on the combination of total variation (TV) regularization and iterative edge detection strategy. In the proposed method, the edge weights of intermediate reconstructions are incorporated into the TV objective function. The optimization is efficiently solved by applying alternating direction method of multipliers. A prudential and conservative edge detection strategy proposed in this paper can obtain the true edges while restricting the errors within an acceptable degree. Based on the comparison on both simulation studies and real CT data set reconstructions, EGTVM provides comparable or even better quality compared to the non-edge guided reconstruction and adaptive steepest descent-projection onto convex sets method. With the utilization of weighted alternating direction TV minimization and edge detection, EGTVM achieves fast and robust convergence and reconstructs high quality image when applied in linear scan CT with under-sampled data set.

Total quality management in blood transfusion.

PubMed

Smit-Sibinga, C T

2000-01-01

Quality management is an ongoing development resulting in consistency products and services and ever increasing customer satisfaction. The ultimum is Total Quality Management. Quality systems and quality management in transfusion medicine have gained considerable attention since the outbreak of the AIDS epidemic. Where product orientation has long been applied through quality control, Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) principles were introduced, shifting the developments in the direction of process orientation. Globally, and particularly in the more industrialised world people and system orientation has come along with the introduction of the ISO9001 concept. Harmonisation and a degree of uniformity are needed to implement a universally applicable Quality System and related Quality Management. Where the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) is the professional organisation with the most extensive experience in quality systems in blood transfusion, the European Union and the Council of Europe now are in the process to design a quality system and management applicable to a larger variety of countries, based on a hybrid of current GMP and ISO9001 principles. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has developed a more universally to implement Quality Manual, with a pilot project in Honduras. It is recommendable to harmonise the various designs and bring the approaches under one common denominator.

Evaluating the effectiveness of implementing quality management practices in the medical industry.

PubMed

Yeh, T-M; Lai, H-P

2015-01-01

To discuss the effectiveness of 30 quality management practices (QMP) including Strategic Management, Balanced ScoreCard, Knowledge Management, and Total Quality Management in the medical industry. A V-shaped performance evaluation matrix is applied to identify the top ten practices that are important but not easy to use or implement. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is then utilized to find key factors to improve the implementation of the top ten tools. The questionnaires were sent to the nursing staff and administrators in a hospital through e-mail and posts. A total of 250 copies were distributed and 217 copies were valid. The importance, easiness, and achievement (i.e., implementation level) of 30 quality management practices were used. Key factors for QMP implementation were sequenced in order of importance as top management involvement, inter-department communication and coordination, teamwork, hospital-wide participation, education and training, consultant professionalism, continuous internal auditing, computerized process, and incentive compensation. Top management can implement the V-shaped performance matrix to determine whether quality management practices need improvement and if so, utilize QFD to find the key factors for improvement.

Stokes Profile Compression Applied to VSM Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toussaint, W. A.; Henney, C. J.; Harvey, J. W.

2012-02-01

The practical details of applying the Expansion in Hermite Functions (EHF) method to compression of full-disk full-Stokes solar spectroscopic data from the SOLIS/VSM instrument are discussed in this paper. The algorithm developed and discussed here preserves the 630.15 and 630.25 nm Fe i lines, along with the local continuum and telluric lines. This compression greatly reduces the amount of space required to store these data sets while maintaining the quality of the data, allowing these observations to be archived and made publicly available with limited bandwidth. Applying EHF to the full-Stokes profiles and saving the coefficient files with Rice compression reduces the disk space required to store these observations by a factor of 20, while maintaining the quality of the data and with a total compression time only 35% slower than the standard gzip (GNU zip) compression.

Evaluation of Preanalytical Quality Indicators by Six Sigma and Pareto`s Principle.

PubMed

Kulkarni, Sweta; Ramesh, R; Srinivasan, A R; Silvia, C R Wilma Delphine

2018-01-01

Preanalytical steps are the major sources of error in clinical laboratory. The analytical errors can be corrected by quality control procedures but there is a need for stringent quality checks in preanalytical area as these processes are done outside the laboratory. Sigma value depicts the performance of laboratory and its quality measures. Hence in the present study six sigma and Pareto principle was applied to preanalytical quality indicators to evaluate the clinical biochemistry laboratory performance. This observational study was carried out for a period of 1 year from November 2015-2016. A total of 1,44,208 samples and 54,265 test requisition forms were screened for preanalytical errors like missing patient information, sample collection details in forms and hemolysed, lipemic, inappropriate, insufficient samples and total number of errors were calculated and converted into defects per million and sigma scale. Pareto`s chart was drawn using total number of errors and cumulative percentage. In 75% test requisition forms diagnosis was not mentioned and sigma value of 0.9 was obtained and for other errors like sample receiving time, stat and type of sample sigma values were 2.9, 2.6, and 2.8 respectively. For insufficient sample and improper ratio of blood to anticoagulant sigma value was 4.3. Pareto`s chart depicts out of 80% of errors in requisition forms, 20% is contributed by missing information like diagnosis. The development of quality indicators, application of six sigma and Pareto`s principle are quality measures by which not only preanalytical, the total testing process can be improved.

[Quality of life and vertigo after bilateral cochlear implantation : Questionnaires as tools for quality assurance].

PubMed

Rader, T; Haerterich, M; Ernst, B P; Stöver, T; Strieth, S

2018-03-01

Persistent dizziness symptoms after cochlear implantation have an impact on quality of life. In this study, the effects of bilateral cochlear implants (CI) on quality of life as well as on subjective dizziness complaints are analyzed using questionnaires, some of which have never been applied before in these patient collectives. In this article, questionnaires for the assessment of dizziness symptoms and quality of life are introduced in order to realize quality assurance. A total of 32 patients with bilateral CI were questioned regarding dizziness symptoms and quality of life. The Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire (NCIQ) was used. In the case of reported regular dizziness, the Vertigo Handicap Questionnaire (VHQ) and the Vertigo Symptom Scale (VSS) were also assessed. Persistent dizziness symptoms were shown in 8 of 32 patients. Quality of life was measured with the NCIQ and was improved significantly (p < 0.001) by 23.7% after the second CI. The dizziness symptoms changed slightly (VHQ -11.2%; VSS +16.4%) after the second implantation. The results show that the questionnaires are valid instruments for documenting quality of life and dizziness symptoms for quality assurance. These questionnaires may be applied as a complement or an alternative to device-based measurements of peripheral vestibular dysfunction.

Translating Deming's 14 Points for Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Melvin, Charles A., III

1991-01-01

A consortium of four Wisconsin school districts has decided to stop tinkering with the educational system and apply W. Edward Deming's 14 management points to total system improvement. The rewritten precepts involve creating and adopting a fitting purpose, infusing quality into the educational "product," and working toward zero defects…

TQM for Professors and Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bateman, George R.; Roberts, Harry V.

This paper offers suggestions on how individual faculty can apply Total Quality Management (TQM) practices to their teaching. In particular the paper describes the experiences and lessons learned by two business school faculty members who took to heart the "Galvin Challenge," Bob Galvin's challenge to professors at the Xerox Quality…

Defining quality of care.

PubMed

Campbell, S M; Roland, M O; Buetow, S A

2000-12-01

This paper defines quality of health care. We suggest that there are two principal dimensions of quality of care for individual patients; access and effectiveness. In essence, do users get the care they need, and is the care effective when they get it? Within effectiveness, we define two key components--effectiveness of clinical care and effectiveness of inter-personal care. These elements are discussed in terms of the structure of the health care system, processes of care, and outcomes resulting from care. The framework relates quality of care to individual patients and we suggest that quality of care is a concept that is at its most meaningful when applied to the individual user of health care. However, care for individuals must placed in the context of providing health care for populations which introduces additional notions of equity and efficiency. We show how this framework can be of practical value by applying the concepts to a set of quality indicators contained within the UK National Performance Assessment Framework and to a set of widely used indicators in the US (HEDIS). In so doing we emphasise the differences between US and UK measures of quality. Using a conceptual framework to describe the totality of quality of care shows which aspects of care any set of quality indicators actually includes and measures and, and which are not included.

SSB taxes and diet quality in U.S. preschoolers: Estimated changes in the 2010 Healthy Eating Index

PubMed Central

Ford, Christopher N.; Poti, Jennifer M.; Ng, Shu Wen; Popkin, Barry M.

2016-01-01

Background Taxing sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has been proposed as a strategy to combat child obesity. Yet, it is unclear how a tax on SSBs might influence the overall quality of diet in preschool children. Thus, we use simulated price increases and the 2010 Healthy Eating Index (HEI-2010) to explore the relationship between SSB taxes and diet quality in preschool children. Methods Price and purchase data from the 2009–2012 Nielsen Homescan Panel and a two-part marginal effects model were used to estimate relative changes in purchases with a 20% increase in the price of SSBs. Demand elasticities were applied to dietary intake data for children ages 2–5y from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (2009–10 and 2011–12) to estimate the impact of a 20% SSB tax on dietary intake and quality (HEI-2010). Results A 20% increase in the price of SSBs was associated with lower total caloric intake (−28 kcal/d, p<0.01), caloric intake from juice drinks (−20 kcal/d, p<0.01), added sugars (−4.1 servings/d, p=0.03), refined grains (−0.63 servings/d, p<0.01), and total meat (−0.56 servings/d, p<0.01). Beneficial decreases in empty calories and refined grains were offset by unfavorable changes in fatty acid profile, total protein, vegetables, and fruit, such that total HEI scores (0–100 range) were not meaningfully changed with a 20% increase in SSB price (difference: −0.85, p<0.01). Conclusions A 20% tax on SSBs could decrease total caloric intake, and intakes of added sugars and SSBs, but is unlikely to improve total diet quality among U.S. preschool children. PMID:27059293

Change in quality management in diabetes care groups and outpatient clinics after feedback and tailored support.

PubMed

Campmans-Kuijpers, Marjo J; Baan, Caroline A; Lemmens, Lidwien C; Rutten, Guy E

2015-02-01

To assess the change in level of diabetes quality management in primary care groups and outpatient clinics after feedback and tailored support. This before-and-after study with a 1-year follow-up surveyed quality managers on six domains of quality management. Questionnaires measured organization of care, multidisciplinary teamwork, patient centeredness, performance results, quality improvement policy, and management strategies (score range 0-100%). Based on the scores, responders received feedback and a benchmark and were granted access to a toolbox of quality improvement instruments. If requested, additional support in improving quality management was available, consisting of an elucidating phone call or a visit from an experienced consultant. After 1 year, the level of quality management was measured again. Of the initially 60 participating care groups, 51 completed the study. The total quality management score improved from 59.8% (95% CI 57.0-62.6%) to 65.1% (62.8-67.5%; P < 0.0001). The same applied to all six domains. The feedback and benchmark improved the total quality management score (P = 0.001). Of the 44 participating outpatient clinics, 28 completed the study. Their total score changed from 65.7% (CI 60.3-71.1%) to 67.3% (CI 62.9-71.7%; P = 0.30). Only the results in the domain multidisciplinary teamwork improved (P = 0.001). Measuring quality management and providing feedback and a benchmark improves the level of quality management in care groups but not in outpatient clinics. The questionnaires might also be a useful asset for other diabetes care groups, such as Accountable Care Organizations. © 2015 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.

Correlation Between Stress and Quality of Life Experienced by Caregivers: Perception of a Group of Healthcare Professionals.

PubMed

Silva, Bhárbara Karolline Rodrigues; Quaresma, Fernando Rodrigues Peixoto; Maciel, Erika da Silva; Figueiredo, Francisco Winter Dos Santos; Sarraf, Jonathan Souza; Adami, Fernando

2017-01-01

This study aims to evaluate the relationship between perceived level of stress and quality of life of professionals working in Prompt Service Units in the city of Palmas, Tocantins. A cross-sectional study was performed among 164 professionals from Prompt Service Units. Stress levels were evaluated using the Perceived Stress Scale. The WHOQOL-bref was used to evaluate the perception of quality of life. Quantitative variables distribution was evaluated using Shapiro-Wilk's test. For the analyses of correlations among perceived level of stress, total quality of life score, and the physical health domain of the WHOQOL-bref, Pearson's correlation test was applied. The significance level adopted for this trial was 95%. The study was approved by the Committee of Ethics in Research with Human Beings. When assessing the perceived level of stress with the total quality of life score, there was no significant correlation between those variables. However, there was an association between the perceived level of stress and the physical health domain of quality of life. Perceived quality of life was correlated with the physical health domain, and this result reinforces the importance of the facets that make up this area.

Spatiotemporal evaluation of the groundwater quality in Gharbiya Governorate, Egypt.

PubMed

Masoud, Alaa A; El Bouraie, Mohamed M; El-Nashar, Wafaa; Mashaly, Hamdy

2017-03-01

Groundwater quality indicators were monitored over 6 years (2007-2012) from 55 drinking water supply wells in Gharbiya Governorate (Egypt). The prime objective was to characterize, for the first time, the governorate-wide significant and sustained trends in the concentrations of the groundwater pollutants. Quality indicators included turbidity, pH, total dissolved solid (TDS), electric conductivity (EC), Cl - , SO 4 2- , Na + , total alkalinity, hardness (total, Mg, and Ca), Fe 2+ , Mn 2+ , Cu 2+ , Zn 2+ , F - , NH 4 + , NO 2 - , NO 3 - , PO 4 3- , dissolved oxygen (DO), and SiO 2 contents. Detection and estimation of trends and magnitude were carried out applying the non-parametric Mann-Kendall and Thiel-Sen trend statistical tests, respectively. Factor analysis was applied to identify significant sources of quality variation and their loads. Violation of groundwater quality standards clarified emergence of Mn 2+ (46%), Fe 2+ (35%), and NH 4 + (33%). Out of the 55 wells, notable upward trends (deterioration) were significant (>95% level) for TDS (89%), NO 3 - (85), PO 4 3- (75%), NH 4 + (65%), total alkalinity (62%), Fe 2+ (58%), NO 2 - (47%), Mg hardness (36%), turbidity (25%), and Mn 2+ (24%). Ranges of attenuation rates (mg/l/year) varied for TDS (24.3, -0.7), Mg hardness (3.8, -0.85), total alkalinity (1.4, -1.2), NO 3 - (0.52, -0.066), PO 4 3- (0.069, -0.064), NH 4 + (0.038, -0.019), Mn 2+ (0.015, -0.044), Fe 2+ (0.006, -0.014), and NO 2 - (0.006, -0.00003). Highest rates marked Tanta (total alkalinity and Fe 2+ ), Al-Mehala Al-Kubra (TDS, Mg hardness, and NO 3 - ), Kafr Al-Zayat (NH 4 + ), Zifta (Mn 2+ ), Bassyun (NO 2 - ), and Qutur (PO 4 3- ). Precision of the trend estimate varied in goodness of fit, for TDS (86%), Mg hardness (76%), total alkalinity (73%), PO 4 3- (67.4%), NH 4 + (66.8%), Mn 2+ (55%), and Fe 2+ (49.6%), arranged in decreasing order. Two main varimax-rotated factors counted for more than 55% of the quality variance and, in particular, significant loads of salinity (TDS, EC, Cl - , Na + , and SO 4 2- ), followed by the alkalinity, hardness, redox potentials (Mn 2+ and Fe 2+ ), and NH 4 + , in decreasing order were identified. The spatial-temporal variation in pollutants originated from organic matter degradation, either naturally from the aquifer peaty sediments or anthropogenic due to improper well head protection in the urban centers or from the agricultural drains in low relief areas. Considering the latest contents of indicators and their rate of increase, the time that the permissible limits would be reached can be accurately estimated and alleviative actions could be effectively set.

Influence of micro-oxygenation treatment before oak aging on phenolic compounds composition, astringency, and color of red wine.

PubMed

Llaudy, María del Carmen; Canals, Roser; González-Manzano, Susana; Canals, Joan Miquel; Santos-Buelga, Celestino; Zamora, Fernando

2006-06-14

Micro-oxygenation is usually applied to red wines as a cheaper alternative to oak aging. It has been suggested, however, that micro-oxygenation can also be used to complement oak aging in order to improve the quality of very astringent and herbaceous red wines. In this paper we study how applying the micro-oxygenation technique before oak aging affects the composition and quality of astringent red wines. When this technique is applied prior to oak aging, the wines have a slightly less intense red color and significantly higher levels of combined and free anthocyanins and ethyl-bridged anthocyanin-flavanol pigments. On the other hand, no differences in other newly formed pigments are found. Applying micro-oxygenation before oak aging does not affect the total proanthocyanidin concentration, but it produces wines with a slightly (though significantly) higher mean degree of proanthocyanidin polymerization and a drastically lower astringency. These wines also present a clearer impact of wood aromas.

The application of ceramsite ecological floating bed in aquaculture: its effects on water quality, phytoplankton, bacteria and fish production.

PubMed

Li, Xiao-Li; Marella, Thomas Kiran; Tao, Ling; Dai, Li-Li; Peng, Liang; Song, Chao-Feng; Li, Gu

2018-06-01

In recent years, biological floating bed technology has been applied increasingly in aquaculture ponds. In this study we developed a novel floating bed made from ceramsite and studied its effect on water quality, phytoplankton, bacteria and fish growth. Water quality was effectively regulated and controlled in ceramsite floating bed (CFB) ponds with an average transparency of 23.18 cm, ammonia nitrogen (NH 4 + -N) of 2.30 mg L -1 , total nitrogen (TN) of 5.09 mg L -1 and total phosphate (TP) of 1.32 mg L -1 which are lower than in control ponds without CFB. Increased phytoplankton species diversity, bacterial number, metabolic activity and microbial diversity was observed with CFB. At the end of growth stage, feed conversion ratio (FCR) was reduced with a total fish yield of 14,838 kg ha -1 at a survival rate of 77.2% in CFB ponds, which is significantly higher than control (P < 0.05). These results emphasize the potential of ecological floating bed to improve water quality, microalgal diversity, reduce the risk of harmful algal blooms and increase the number, activity and diversity of microorganisms as well as fish yield.

Does TQM Affect Teaching and Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mauriel, John J.; And Others

Many schools and school districts are attempting to introduce principles and practices of Total Quality Management (TQM). These attempts take many forms with varying degrees of commitment of resources and management attention. This paper describes the research design of a study intended to identify best current practices in applying TQM concepts…

TQM Can Address Higher Ed's Ills. Westinghouse Executive Offers Advice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Melissaratos, Aris; Arendt, Carl

1992-01-01

Each of the Total Quality Management principles used in industry can be appropriately and usefully applied in a college or university, with some change in vocabulary and emphases. Institutions will find the method helpful in competition for students, controlling costs, and answering demands for accountability. (MSE)

An Umbrella Review of Nuts Intake and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease.

PubMed

Schwingshackl, Lukas; Hoffmann, Georg; Missbach, Benjamin; Stelmach-Mardas, Marta; Boeing, Heiner

2017-01-01

Nuts have been an indispensable component of the human diet for hundreds because of their unique nutrient composition and are thought to play a beneficial part in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. To evaluate the extent, validity and presence of evidence for studies investigating the impact of nuts intake on biomarkers of cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular events, we performed an umbrella review of all published meta-analyses synthesizing data from both observational studies and randomized controlled trials. PubMed (between 1966 and April 2016) was searched for systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Methodological quality was assessed by applying the AMSTAR score (0-11 points), and the meta-evidence by applying NutriGrade, our recently developed scoring system (0-10 points). In total, 14 meta-analyses were included in the umbrella review. Only 4 out of 14 reported an AMSTAR score ≥8 (high methodological quality), whereas NutriGrade meta-evidence score varied between 2 (very low meta-evidence) and 7.9 (moderate meta-evidence). There is consistent evidence from intervention trials, reporting significant reductions for total cholesterol, and from observational studies that higher intakes of nuts were associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and hypertension. On the other side no effect could be observed for stroke, HDL-cholesterol, and blood pressure in the normal range. In summary, the present umbrella review showed that nuts intake was associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and hypertension, and lower levels of total cholesterol. The observed evidence is limited by the moderate methodological quality and very low to moderate quality of evidence. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Impact of high pressure processing on color, bioactive compounds, polyphenol oxidase activity, and microbiological attributes of pumpkin purée.

PubMed

González-Cebrino, Francisco; Durán, Rocío; Delgado-Adámez, Jonathan; Contador, Rebeca; Bernabé, Rosario Ramírez

2016-04-01

Physicochemical parameters, bioactive compounds' content (carotenoids and total phenols), total antioxidant activity, and enzymatic activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) were evaluated after high pressure processing (HPP) on a pumpkin purée (cv. 'Butternut'). Three pressure levels (400, 500, and 600 MPa) were combined with three holding times (200, 400, and 600 s). The applied treatments reduced the levels of total aerobic mesophilic (TAM), total psychrophilic and psychrotrophic bacteria (TPP), and molds and yeasts (M&Y). All applied treatments did not affect enzymatic activity of PPO. Pressure level increased CIE L* values, which could enhance the lightness perception of high pressure (HP)-treated purées. No differences were found between the untreated and HP-treated purées regarding total phenols and carotenoids content (lutein, α-carotene, and β-carotene) and total antioxidant activity. HPP did not affect most quality parameters and maintained the levels of bioactive compounds. However, it did not achieve the complete inhibition of PPO, which could reduce the shelf-life of the pumpkin purée. © The Author(s) 2015.

Groundwater quality assessment of urban Bengaluru using multivariate statistical techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gulgundi, Mohammad Shahid; Shetty, Amba

2018-03-01

Groundwater quality deterioration due to anthropogenic activities has become a subject of prime concern. The objective of the study was to assess the spatial and temporal variations in groundwater quality and to identify the sources in the western half of the Bengaluru city using multivariate statistical techniques. Water quality index rating was calculated for pre and post monsoon seasons to quantify overall water quality for human consumption. The post-monsoon samples show signs of poor quality in drinking purpose compared to pre-monsoon. Cluster analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant analysis (DA) were applied to the groundwater quality data measured on 14 parameters from 67 sites distributed across the city. Hierarchical cluster analysis (CA) grouped the 67 sampling stations into two groups, cluster 1 having high pollution and cluster 2 having lesser pollution. Discriminant analysis (DA) was applied to delineate the most meaningful parameters accounting for temporal and spatial variations in groundwater quality of the study area. Temporal DA identified pH as the most important parameter, which discriminates between water quality in the pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons and accounts for 72% seasonal assignation of cases. Spatial DA identified Mg, Cl and NO3 as the three most important parameters discriminating between two clusters and accounting for 89% spatial assignation of cases. Principal component analysis was applied to the dataset obtained from the two clusters, which evolved three factors in each cluster, explaining 85.4 and 84% of the total variance, respectively. Varifactors obtained from principal component analysis showed that groundwater quality variation is mainly explained by dissolution of minerals from rock water interactions in the aquifer, effect of anthropogenic activities and ion exchange processes in water.

Factors Affecting Quality and Health Promoting Compounds during Growth and Postharvest Life of Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.)

PubMed Central

Correia, Sofia; Schouten, Rob; Silva, Ana P.; Gonçalves, Berta

2017-01-01

Sweet cherries are attractive fruits due to their taste, color, nutritional value, and beneficial health effects. Sweet cherry is a highly perishable fruit and all quality attributes and the level of health promoting compounds are affected by growth conditions, picking, packing, transport, and storage. During production, the correct combination of scion × rootstock will produce fruits with higher firmness, weight, sugars, vitamins, and phenolic compounds that boost the fruit antioxidant activity. Orchard management, such as applying drip irrigation and summer pruning, will increase fruit sugar levels and total phenolic content, while application of growth regulators can result in improved storability, increased red coloring, increased fruit size, and reduced cracking. Salicylic acid, oxalic acid, acetylsalicylic acid, and methyl salicylate are promising growth regulators as they also increase total phenolics, anthocyanins, and induce higher activity of antioxidant enzymes. These growth regulators are now also applied as fruit coatings that improve shelf-life with higher antioxidant enzyme activities and total phenolics. Optimizing storage and transport conditions, such as hydro cooling with added CaCl2, chain temperature and relative humidity control, are crucial for slowing down decay of quality attributes and increasing the antioxidant capacity. Application of controlled atmosphere during storage is successful in delaying quality attributes, but lowers ascorbic acid levels. The combination of low temperature storage in combination with modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) is successful in reducing the incidence of fruit decay, while preserving taste attributes and stem color with a higher antioxidant capacity. A new trend in MAP is the use of biodegradable films such as micro-perforated polylactic acid film that combine significant retention of quality attributes, high consumer acceptability, and a reduced environmental footprint. Another trend is to replace MAP with fruit edible coatings. Edible coatings, such as various lipid composite coatings, have advantages in retaining quality attributes and increasing the antioxidant activity (chitosan) and are regarded as approved food additives, although studies regarding consumer acceptance are needed. The recent publication of the sweet cherry genome will likely increase the identification of more candidate genes involved in growing and maintaining health related compounds and quality attributes. PMID:29312407

The effects of indwelling voice prosthesis on the quality of life, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem in patients with total laryngectomy.

PubMed

Polat, Beldan; Orhan, Kadir Serkan; Kesimli, Mustafa Caner; Gorgulu, Yasemin; Ulusan, Murat; Deger, Kemal

2015-11-01

This study aims to evaluate the effects of voice rehabilitation with indwelling voice prosthesis on quality of life, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and sexual functions in laryngectomy patients. Provox-1 was applied to 30 patients who underwent total laryngectomy by opening a tracheoesophageal fistula. WHO Quality of Life-BREF, Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Arizona Sexual Experience Scale forms were asked to be filled out by the patients before voice prosthesis application. These tests were asked to be filled out again 3 months later after the voice prosthesis application. Paired samples and Wilcoxon tests were used to compare before and after operation values. Indwelling voice prosthesis was found to improve quality of life, self-esteem, and sexual function (p < 0.05). Additionally, symptoms of depression and anxiety were regressed (p < 0.05). Indwelling voice prosthesis was found to especially increase the quality of life and decrease depression (p < 0.05). This study is an uncontrolled single-arm study comparing patients' psychosocial statuses pre- and post-voice prosthesis.

Quality in the pharmaceutical industry - A literature review.

PubMed

Haleem, Reham M; Salem, Maissa Y; Fatahallah, Faten A; Abdelfattah, Laila E

2015-10-01

The aim of this study is to:a.Highlight the most important guidelines and practices of quality in the pharmaceutical industry.b.Organize such guidelines and practices to create a guide to pave the way for other researchers who would like to dig deeper into these guidelines and practices. A review was conducted of 102 publications; 56 publications were concerned with the pharmaceutical quality directly while 46 publications were concerned with the general quality practices. The content of those sources was analyzed and the following themes were identified:a.Research theme 1: Guidelines of the pharmaceutical quality.b.Research theme 2: General practices recently applied in the pharmaceutical industry. The following guidelines were identified and reviewed: WHO guidelines, FDA guidelines, EU guidelines and ICH guidelines in the research theme I. In research theme II; the following topics were identified and reviewed: quality risk management, quality by design, corrective actions and preventive actions, process capability analysis, Six Sigma, process analytical technology, lean manufacturing, total quality management, ISO series and HACCP. Upon reviewing the previously highlighted guidelines and the practices that are widely applied in the pharmaceutical industry, it was noticed that there is an abundant number of papers and articles that explain the general guidelines and practices but the literature lack those describing application; case studies of the pharmaceutical factories applying those guidelines and significance of those guidelines and practices. It is recommended that the literature would invest more in the area of application and significance of guidelines and practices. New case studies should be done to prove the feasibility of such practices.

Quality enhancement in the Japanese sea bass (Lateolabrax japonicas) fillets stored at 4°C by chitosan coating incorporated with citric acid or licorice extract.

PubMed

Qiu, Xujian; Chen, Shengjun; Liu, Guangming; Yang, Qiuming

2014-11-01

The preserving effects of chitosan, chitosan and citric acid, chitosan and licorice extract on fresh Japanese sea bass fillets stored at 4 °C for 12 days were studied. Results showed that citric acid or licorice extract can enhance the preserving function of chitosan significantly by retarding lipid oxidation and inhibiting microbial growth as reflected in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and total plate count, respectively. Both total volatile basic nitrogen values and sensory scores indicated chitosan and citric acid or licorice extract can significantly reduce the quality loss and extend the shelf life of Japanese sea bass fish fillets during refrigerated storage. Citric acid or licorice extract with chitosan could thus be applied in the seafood industry to enhance quality of fish fillets as natural preservatives. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measuring the Quality of the u-Learning Service Using the Zone of Tolerance SERVQUAL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Seong Jin; Park, Keon Chul; Seo, Hyun Sik; Lee, Bong Gyou

The purpose of this study is to analyze diverse factors that affect service quality of Digital textbook service. The ZOT(Zone of Tolerance) SERVQUAL has been applied to develop the research model. Users of the Digital textbook service were selected as subjects for the sample frame. A total of 115 surveys from over 112 schools were collected and used as data for analysis. Results of the survey by SPSS Win Ver. 12.0 showed that the perceived level of service quality in terms of reliability is particularly low, and is quite different from adequate quality. This paper suggests useful guidelines to education providers for improving their public u-Learning environment.

[Efficiency indicators to contribute to sustainability of health services in Spain].

PubMed

García, E I; Mira Solves, J J; Guilabert Mora, M

2014-01-01

Identifying a minimum set of efficiency indicators calculated from current information sources. Interventions adopted from the analysis of these indicators could contribute to health services sustainability. We applied the discussion group technique. A total of 23 quality coordinators from around the country and the representatives of the regional quality societies in SECA (Spanish Society for Quality in Healthcare) participated. Ten efficiency indicators useful for integrated management areas were identified and accepted, 5 in the area of primary care and 5 for hospital management. The efficiency indicators agreed upon could contribute to the sustainability of the health system without this affecting the quality of care. Copyright © 2014 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Estimation of pollutant loads considering dam operation in Han River Basin by BASINS/Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN.

PubMed

Jung, Kwang-Wook; Yoon, Choon-G; Jang, Jae-Ho; Kong, Dong-Soo

2008-01-01

Effective watershed management often demands qualitative and quantitative predictions of the effect of future management activities as arguments for policy makers and administration. The BASINS geographic information system was developed to compute total maximum daily loads, which are helpful to establish hydrological process and water quality modeling system. In this paper the BASINS toolkit HSPF model is applied in 20,271 km(2) large watershed of the Han River Basin is used for applicability of HSPF and BMPs scenarios. For proper evaluation of watershed and stream water quality, comprehensive estimation methods are necessary to assess large amounts of point source and nonpoint-source (NPS) pollution based on the total watershed area. In this study, The Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) was estimated to simulate watershed pollutant loads containing dam operation and applied BMPs scenarios for control NPS pollution. The 8-day monitoring data (about three years) were used in the calibration and verification processes. Model performance was in the range of "very good" and "good" based on percent difference. The water-quality simulation results were encouraging for this large sizable watershed with dam operation practice and mixed land uses; HSPF proved adequate, and its application is recommended to simulate watershed processes and BMPs evaluation. IWA Publishing 2008.

Nutritional quality of major meals consumed away from home in Brazil and its association with the overall diet quality.

PubMed

Gorgulho, Bartira Mendes; Fisberg, Regina Mara; Marchioni, Dirce Maria Lobo

2013-08-01

The objective of the study is to evaluate the nutritional quality of meals consumed away from home and its association with overall diet quality. Data was obtained from 834 participants of a Health Survey in São Paulo, Brazil. Food intake was measured by a 24-hour dietary recall applied telephonically using the Automated Multiple-Pass Method. Overall dietary quality was assessed by the Brazilian Healthy Eating Index Revised (B-HEIR) and the Meal Quality Index (MQI) was used to evaluate dietary quality of the main meals. The association between the B-HEIR and the MQI was assessed by linear regression analysis. The consumption of at least one of the three main meals away from home was reported for 32% of respondents (70 adolescents, 156 adults and 40 elderly). The average MQI score of lunch consumed away from home was lower than lunch consumed at home, with higher amounts of total and saturated fats. The average score of B-HEIR was 58 points and was associated with the MQI score, energy, meal consumption location and gender. Lunch consumed away from home presented the worst quality, being higher in total and saturated fat. However, the meals consumed at home also need improvement. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Diet quality of Italian yogurt consumers: an application of the probability of adequate nutrient intake score (PANDiet).

PubMed

Mistura, Lorenza; D'Addezio, Laura; Sette, Stefania; Piccinelli, Raffaela; Turrini, Aida

2016-01-01

The diet quality in yogurt consumers and non-consumers was evaluated by applying the probability of adequate nutrient intake (PANDiet) index to a sample of adults and elderly from the Italian food consumption survey INRAN SCAI 2005-06. Overall, yogurt consumers had a significantly higher mean intake of energy, calcium and percentage of energy from total sugars whereas the mean percentage of energy from total fat, saturated fatty acid and total carbohydrate were significantly (p < 0.01) lower than in non-consumers. The PANDiet index was significantly higher in yogurt consumers than in non-consumers, (60.58 ± 0.33 vs. 58.58 ± 0.19, p < 0.001). The adequacy sub-score for 17 nutrients for which usual intake should be above the reference value was significantly higher among yogurt consumers. The items of calcium, potassium and riboflavin showed the major percentage variation between consumers and non-consumers. Yogurt consumers were more likely to have adequate intakes of vitamins and minerals, and a higher quality score of the diet.

Developing a Water Quality Index (WQI) for an Irrigation Dam.

PubMed

De La Mora-Orozco, Celia; Flores-Lopez, Hugo; Rubio-Arias, Hector; Chavez-Duran, Alvaro; Ochoa-Rivero, Jesus

2017-04-29

Pollution levels have been increasing in water ecosystems worldwide. A water quality index (WQI) is an available tool to approximate the quality of water and facilitate the work of decision-makers by grouping and analyzing numerous parameters with a single numerical classification system. The objective of this study was to develop a WQI for a dam used for irrigation of about 5000 ha of agricultural land. The dam, La Vega, is located in Teuchitlan, Jalisco, Mexico. Seven sites were selected for water sampling and samples were collected in March, June, July, September, and December 2014 in an initial effort to develop a WQI for the dam. The WQI methodology, which was recommended by the Mexican National Water Commission (CNA), was used. The parameters employed to calculate the WQI were pH, electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness (TH), alkalinity (Alk), total phosphorous (TP), Cl - , NO₃, SO₄, Ca, Mg, K, B, As, Cu, and Zn. No significant differences in WQI values were found among the seven sampling sites along the dam. However, seasonal differences in WQI were noted. In March and June, water quality was categorized as poor. By July and September, water quality was classified as medium to good. Quality then decreased, and by December water quality was classified as medium to poor. In conclusion, water treatment must be applied before waters from La Vega dam reservoir can be used for irrigation or other purposes. It is recommended that the water quality at La Vega dam is continually monitored for several years in order to confirm the findings of this short-term study.

Use of fast neutrons for assessing sarcopenia by measuring body phosphorus: relevance to health and quality of life of the elderly

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kehayias, Joseph J.; Zhuang, Hong; Doherty, Patricia L.

1997-02-01

Sarcopenia, defined as the loss of skeletal muscle with age, may lead to frailty, fractures due to falls, and reduced immunity to disease. By understanding the causes of muscle loss with age we will be able to develop ways of maintaining functional capacity and quality of life for the elderly. Elemental Partition Analysis (EPA) is a new approach to body composition assessment. A major element of the body is measured and then, by means of other measurements, is partitioned to the contributing body compartments. We developed a model for measuring total body muscle by applying the EPA method to total body phosphorus (TBP). We measure TBP by in vivo fast neutron activation analysis using the reaction 31P(n,(alpha) )28Al. The main contributors to TBP are bone and skeletal muscle. Adipose tissue and the liver contribute less than 3 percent. We use dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to evaluate the contribution of bone to TBP. COrrections are applied for the small contributions of the liver and adipose tissue to TBP to derive muscle phosphorus. The technique requires high precision measurements for both TBP and DXA. The total body radiation exposure for measuring human subjects is 0.30 mSv.

The Quality of Educational Services from Students' Viewpoint in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PubMed

Moosavi, Ahmad; Mohseni, Mohammad; Ziaiifar, Hajar; Azami-Aghdash, Saber; Gharasi Manshadi, Mahdi; Rezapour, Aziz

2017-04-01

Students' view is an important factor in assessing the quality of universities. Servqual pattern is regarded as the most prominent for services quality measurement. This study aimed to review systematically studies that investigated the quality of educational services. A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies evaluating students' viewpoint about quality of educational services were conducted. Required data were collected from PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Science Direct, Google Scholar, SID, Magiran, and Iranmedex, without time restriction. Computer software CMA, ver. 2 was applied to estimate the total mean score of students' perception and expectation of services quality and the gap between them. The 18 eligible studies were entered into study. The studies were conducted between 2004 and 2014. Based on the random effect model, the total mean score of students' perception, students' expectation and the gap between them were estimated 2.92 (95% CI, 2.75 - 3.09), 4.18 (95% CI, 3.98 - 4.38), respectively and -1.30 (95% CI= -1.56, -1.04). The studied students' expectation level is higher than the current quality of educational services. There is a tangible difference between their expectations and the current quality, which requires officials' efforts to improve quality in all dimensions and effective steps can be taken towards improving the quality of educational services through appropriate training planning and training for empowering employees in colleges and universities.

Optimization and validation of Folin-Ciocalteu method for the determination of total polyphenol content of Pu-erh tea.

PubMed

Musci, Marilena; Yao, Shicong

2017-12-01

Pu-erh tea is a post-fermented tea that has recently gained popularity worldwide, due to potential health benefits related to the antioxidant activity resulting from its high polyphenolic content. The Folin-Ciocalteu method is a simple, rapid, and inexpensive assay widely applied for the determination of total polyphenol content. Over the past years, it has been subjected to many modifications, often without any systematic optimization or validation. In our study, we sought to optimize the Folin-Ciocalteu method, evaluate quality parameters including linearity, precision and stability, and then apply the optimized model to determine the total polyphenol content of 57 Chinese teas, including green tea, aged and ripened Pu-erh tea. Our optimized Folin-Ciocalteu method reduced analysis time, allowed for the analysis of a large number of samples, to discriminate among the different teas, and to assess the effect of the post-fermentation process on polyphenol content.

Applying Total Quality Leadership to an Aviation Squadron

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-12-01

was developed in 1950 by Professor Kaoru Ishikawa . (Juran,1988,pp.22.37) It was developed to show the relationship between some fail point or desired...AND-EFmECT DIAGRAM 1. Description of Cause-and-Effect Diagram The cause-and-effect diagram (also known as the Ishikawa diagram or the fishbone diagram

Quality Australian Journals in the Humanities and Social Sciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haddow, Gaby

2008-01-01

A pilot study was undertaken to test the journal diffusion factor (JDF) as an alternative to journal impact factors (JIFs) for ranking journals. Bibliometric research methods were applied to rank Australian architecture, communications and education journals by the JDF; this was with the total number of citations they attract in ISI indexed…

Effects of agricultural management, land use, and watershed scale on E. coli concentrations in runoff and streamflow

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Fecal contamination of surface waters is a critical water quality concern with serious human health implications. Many states use Escherichia coli (E. coli) as an indicator organism for fecal contamination and apply watershed models to develop and support bacterial Total Maximum Daily Loads; howeve...

Use of ATR FT-IR spectroscopy in non-destructive and rapid assessment of developmental cotton fibers

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The knowledge of chemical and compositional components in cotton fibers is of value to cotton breeders and growers for cotton enhancement and to textile processors for quality control. In this work, we applied the previously proposed simple algorithms to analyze the attenuated total reflection Fouri...

Making Total Quality Management + Just-in-Time Manufacturing Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waldrop, Phillip S.; Scott, Thomas E.

2000-01-01

In one case study, teamwork was implemented in mainstream production; in a second, teamwork was applied to an ad hoc project. The cases show that process technologies and management strategies such as just-in-time are not enough; selection of the appropriate mix of individuals with complementary traits is crucial. (SK)

Potential impacts of climate change on water quality in a shallow reservoir in China.

PubMed

Zhang, Chen; Lai, Shiyu; Gao, Xueping; Xu, Liping

2015-10-01

To study the potential effects of climate change on water quality in a shallow reservoir in China, the field data analysis method is applied to data collected over a given monitoring period. Nine water quality parameters (water temperature, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand and dissolved oxygen) and three climate indicators for 20 years (1992-2011) are considered. The annual trends exhibit significant trends with respect to certain water quality and climate parameters. Five parameters exhibit significant seasonality differences in the monthly means between the two decades (1992-2001 and 2002-2011) of the monitoring period. Non-parametric regression of the statistical analyses is performed to explore potential key climate drivers of water quality in the reservoir. The results indicate that seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall may have positive impacts on water quality. However, an extremely cold spring and high wind speed are likely to affect the self-stabilising equilibrium states of the reservoir, which requires attention in the future. The results suggest that land use changes have important impact on nitrogen load. This study provides useful information regarding the potential effects of climate change on water quality in developing countries.

Flexible optical metrology strategies for the control and quality assurance of small series production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitt, R.; Pavim, A.

2009-06-01

The demand for achieving smaller and more flexible production series with a considerable diversity of products complicates the control of the manufacturing tasks, leading to big challenges for the quality assurance systems. The quality assurance strategy that is nowadays used for mass production is unable to cope with the inspection flexibility needed among automated small series production, because the measuring strategy is totally dependent on the fixed features of the few manufactured object variants and on process parameters that can be controlled/compensated during production time. The major challenge faced by a quality assurance system applied to small series production facilities is to guarantee the needed quality level already at the first run, and therefore, the quality assurance system has to adapt itself constantly to the new manufacturing conditions. The small series production culture requires a change of paradigms, because its strategies are totally different from mass production. This work discusses the tight inspection requirements of small series production and presents flexible metrology strategies based on optical sensor data fusion techniques, agent-based systems as well as cognitive and self-optimised systems for assuring the needed quality level of flexible small series. Examples of application scenarios are provided among the automated assembly of solid state lasers and the flexible inspection of automotive headlights.

Effects of transdermal magnesium chloride on quality of life for patients with fibromyalgia: a feasibility study.

PubMed

Engen, Deborah J; McAllister, Samantha J; Whipple, Mary O; Cha, Stephen S; Dion, Liza J; Vincent, Ann; Bauer, Brent A; Wahner-Roedler, Dietlind L

2015-09-01

Fibromyalgia is a syndrome characterized by chronic pain, fatigue, depression, and sleep disturbances. Its primary cause is unclear. Several studies have reported decreased intracellular magnesium levels in patients with fibromyalgia and have found negative correlation between magnesium levels and fibromyalgia symptoms. To gather preliminary data on whether transdermal magnesium can improve quality of life for women who have fibromyalgia. This is a patient questionnaires and survey in a fibromyalgia clinic at a tertiary medical center. Forty female patients with the diagnosis of fibromyalgia were enrolled. Each participant was provided a spray bottle containing a transdermal magnesium chloride solution and asked to apply 4 sprays per limb twice daily for 4 weeks. Participants were asked to complete the Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire, SF-36v2 Health Survey, and a quality-of-life analog scale at baseline, week 2, and week 4. Questionnaire and survey scores, evaluated through intent-to-treat and per-protocol analyses. Twenty-four patients completed the study (mean [SD] age, 57.2 [7.6] years; white, 95%; mean body mass index, 31.3 kg/m2). With intention-to-treat analysis, Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire subscale and total scores were significantly improved at week 2 and week 4 (total score, P=0.001). Per-protocol analysis results were similar: all subscales of the Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire were significantly improved at week 2 and week 4 (total score, P=0.001). This pilot study suggests that transdermal magnesium chloride applied on upper and lower limbs may be beneficial to patients with fibromyalgia. ClinicalTrials.gov.ldentifier NCT01968772.

Quality assurance and quality improvement in U.S. clinical molecular genetic laboratories.

PubMed

Chen, Bin; Richards, C Sue; Wilson, Jean Amos; Lyon, Elaine

2011-04-01

A robust quality-assurance program is essential for laboratories that perform molecular genetic testing to maintain high-quality testing and be able to address challenges associated with performance or delivery of testing services as the use of molecular genetic tests continues to expand in clinical and public health practice. This unit discusses quality-assurance and quality-improvement considerations that are critical for molecular genetic testing performed for heritable diseases and conditions. Specific discussion is provided on applying regulatory standards and best practices in establishing/verifying test performance, ensuring quality of the total testing process, monitoring and maintaining personnel competency, and continuing quality improvement. The unit provides a practical reference for laboratory professionals to use in recognizing and addressing essential quality-assurance issues in human molecular genetic testing. It should also provide useful information for genetics researchers, trainees, and fellows in human genetics training programs, as well as others who are interested in quality assurance and quality improvement for molecular genetic testing. 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Quality in the pharmaceutical industry – A literature review

PubMed Central

Haleem, Reham M.; Salem, Maissa Y.; Fatahallah, Faten A.; Abdelfattah, Laila E.

2013-01-01

Objectives The aim of this study is to:a.Highlight the most important guidelines and practices of quality in the pharmaceutical industry.b.Organize such guidelines and practices to create a guide to pave the way for other researchers who would like to dig deeper into these guidelines and practices. Design A review was conducted of 102 publications; 56 publications were concerned with the pharmaceutical quality directly while 46 publications were concerned with the general quality practices. The content of those sources was analyzed and the following themes were identified:a.Research theme 1: Guidelines of the pharmaceutical quality.b.Research theme 2: General practices recently applied in the pharmaceutical industry. Main outcome measures The following guidelines were identified and reviewed: WHO guidelines, FDA guidelines, EU guidelines and ICH guidelines in the research theme I. In research theme II; the following topics were identified and reviewed: quality risk management, quality by design, corrective actions and preventive actions, process capability analysis, Six Sigma, process analytical technology, lean manufacturing, total quality management, ISO series and HACCP. Results Upon reviewing the previously highlighted guidelines and the practices that are widely applied in the pharmaceutical industry, it was noticed that there is an abundant number of papers and articles that explain the general guidelines and practices but the literature lack those describing application; case studies of the pharmaceutical factories applying those guidelines and significance of those guidelines and practices. Conclusions It is recommended that the literature would invest more in the area of application and significance of guidelines and practices. New case studies should be done to prove the feasibility of such practices. PMID:26594110

Rapid non-destructive assessment of pork edible quality by using VIS/NIR spectroscopic technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Leilei; Peng, Yankun; Dhakal, Sagar; Song, Yulin; Zhao, Juan; Zhao, Songwei

2013-05-01

The objectives of this research were to develop a rapid non-destructive method to evaluate the edible quality of chilled pork. A total of 42 samples were packed in seal plastic bags and stored at 4°C for 1 to 21 days. Reflectance spectra were collected from visible/near-infrared spectroscopy system in the range of 400nm to 1100nm. Microbiological, physicochemical and organoleptic characteristics such as the total viable counts (TVC), total volatile basic-nitrogen (TVB-N), pH value and color parameters L* were determined to appraise pork edible quality. Savitzky-Golay (SG) based on five and eleven smoothing points, Multiple Scattering Correlation (MSC) and first derivative pre-processing methods were employed to eliminate the spectra noise. The support vector machines (SVM) and partial least square regression (PLSR) were applied to establish prediction models using the de-noised spectra. A linear correlation was developed between the VIS/NIR spectroscopy and parameters such as TVC, TVB-N, pH and color parameter L* indexes, which could gain prediction results with Rv of 0.931, 0.844, 0.805 and 0.852, respectively. The results demonstrated that VIS/NIR spectroscopy technique combined with SVM possesses a powerful assessment capability. It can provide a potential tool for detecting pork edible quality rapidly and non-destructively.

Characterizing potential water quality impacts from soils treated with dust suppressants.

PubMed

Beighley, R Edward; He, Yiping; Valdes, Julio R

2009-01-01

Two separate laboratory experiment series, surface runoff and steady-state seepage, were performed to determine if dust suppressant products can be applied to soils with an expected minimal to no negative impact on water quality. The experiments were designed to mimic arid field conditions and used two soils (clayey and sandy) and six different dust suppressants. The two experiments consisted of: (i) simulated rainfall (intensities of 18, 33, or 61 mm h(-1)) and associated runoff from soil trays at a surface slope of 33%; and (ii) steady-state, constant head seepage through soil columns. Both experiment series involved two product application scenarios and three application ages (i.e., to account for degradation effects) for a total of 126 surface runoff and 80 column experiments. One composite effluent sample was collected from each experiment and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity, total suspended solids (TSS), total dissolved solids, dissolved oxygen, total organic carbon, nitrate, nitrite, and phosphate. Paired t tests at 1 and 5% levels of significance and project specific data quality objectives are used to compare water quality parameters from treated and untreated soils. Overall, the results from this laboratory scale study suggest that the studied dust suppressants have minimal potential for adverse impacts to selected water quality parameters. The primary impacts were increased TSS for two synthetic products from the surface runoff experiments on both soils. The increase in TSS was not expected based on previous studies and may be attributed to this study's focus on simulating real-world soil agitation/movement at an active construction site subjected to rough grading.

Characterisation of Aronia powders obtained by different drying processes.

PubMed

Horszwald, Anna; Julien, Heritier; Andlauer, Wilfried

2013-12-01

Nowadays, food industry is facing challenges connected with the preservation of the highest possible quality of fruit products obtained after processing. Attention has been drawn to Aronia fruits due to numerous health promoting properties of their products. However, processing of Aronia, like other berries, leads to difficulties that stem from the preparation process, as well as changes in the composition of bioactive compounds. Consequently, in this study, Aronia commercial juice was subjected to different drying techniques: spray drying, freeze drying and vacuum drying with the temperature range of 40-80 °C. All powders obtained had a high content of total polyphenols. Powders gained by spray drying had the highest values which corresponded to a high content of total flavonoids, total monomeric anthocyanins, cyaniding-3-glucoside and total proanthocyanidins. Analysis of the results exhibited a correlation between selected bioactive compounds and their antioxidant capacity. In conclusion, drying techniques have an impact on selected quality parameters, and different drying techniques cause changes in the content of bioactives analysed. Spray drying can be recommended for preservation of bioactives in Aronia products. Powder quality depends mainly on the process applied and parameters chosen. Therefore, Aronia powders production should be adapted to the requirements and design of the final product. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A database for spectral image quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Moan, Steven; George, Sony; Pedersen, Marius; Blahová, Jana; Hardeberg, Jon Yngve

2015-01-01

We introduce a new image database dedicated to multi-/hyperspectral image quality assessment. A total of nine scenes representing pseudo-at surfaces of different materials (textile, wood, skin. . . ) were captured by means of a 160 band hyperspectral system with a spectral range between 410 and 1000nm. Five spectral distortions were designed, applied to the spectral images and subsequently compared in a psychometric experiment, in order to provide a basis for applications such as the evaluation of spectral image difference measures. The database can be downloaded freely from http://www.colourlab.no/cid.

Curriculum Advancement for Work Force Colleges: The Nicolet College Process.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bass, Howard G. Sam

The rapid growth since the 1980s of the use of total quality workforce methods in U.S. companies has contributed to the movement for integrating academic and vocational/technical education. This integration seeks to improve the intellectual capabilities of students through applied and contextual learning and thus make them more capable of adapting…

Development of Game-Like Simulations for Procedural Knowledge in Healthcare Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Torrente, Javier; Borro-Escribano, Blanca; Freire, Manuel; del Blanco, Ángel; Marchiori, Eugenio J.; Martinez-Ortiz, Iván; Moreno-Ger, Pablo; Fernández-Manjón, Baltasar

2014-01-01

We present EGDA, an educational game development approach focused on the teaching of procedural knowledge using a cost-effective approach. EGDA proposes four tasks: analysis, design, implementation, and quality assurance that are subdivided in a total of 12 subtasks. One of the benefits of EGDA is that anyone can apply it to develop a game since…

Developing a Water Quality Index (WQI) for an Irrigation Dam

PubMed Central

De La Mora-Orozco, Celia; Flores-Lopez, Hugo; Rubio-Arias, Hector; Chavez-Duran, Alvaro; Ochoa-Rivero, Jesus

2017-01-01

Pollution levels have been increasing in water ecosystems worldwide. A water quality index (WQI) is an available tool to approximate the quality of water and facilitate the work of decision-makers by grouping and analyzing numerous parameters with a single numerical classification system. The objective of this study was to develop a WQI for a dam used for irrigation of about 5000 ha of agricultural land. The dam, La Vega, is located in Teuchitlan, Jalisco, Mexico. Seven sites were selected for water sampling and samples were collected in March, June, July, September, and December 2014 in an initial effort to develop a WQI for the dam. The WQI methodology, which was recommended by the Mexican National Water Commission (CNA), was used. The parameters employed to calculate the WQI were pH, electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness (TH), alkalinity (Alk), total phosphorous (TP), Cl−, NO3, SO4, Ca, Mg, K, B, As, Cu, and Zn. No significant differences in WQI values were found among the seven sampling sites along the dam. However, seasonal differences in WQI were noted. In March and June, water quality was categorized as poor. By July and September, water quality was classified as medium to good. Quality then decreased, and by December water quality was classified as medium to poor. In conclusion, water treatment must be applied before waters from La Vega dam reservoir can be used for irrigation or other purposes. It is recommended that the water quality at La Vega dam is continually monitored for several years in order to confirm the findings of this short-term study. PMID:28468230

Bone quality assessment for total hip arthroplasty with intraoperative trabecular torque measurements.

PubMed

Klotz, Matthias C M; Beckmann, Nicholas A; Bitsch, Rudi G; Seebach, Elisabeth; Reiner, Tobias; Jäger, Sebastian

2014-11-13

In cases of poor bone quality, intraoperative torque measurement might be an alternative to preoperative dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to assess bone quality in total hip arthroplasty (THA). Trabecular peak torque measurement was applied in 14 paired fresh frozen human femurs. Here, a 6.5 × 23 mm wingblade was inserted into the proximal femur without harming the lateral cortical bone. Further tests of the proximal femur also evaluated bone strength (DXA, micro-computed tomography (μCT), monoaxial compression test), and the results were compared to the trabecular torque measurement. Student's t-test was used to compare the values of the groups. Pearson product-moment was applied to correlate the values of the peak torque measurement with the bone strength measured by DXA, μCT, and monoaxial compression test. In the femoral head, the mean trabecular peak torque was 4.38 ± 1.86 Nm. These values showed a strong correlation with the values of the DXA, the μCT, and the biomechanical load test (Pearson's product-moment: DXA: 0.86, μCT-BMD: 0.80, load test: 0.85). Furthermore, the torque measurement showed a more pronounced correlation with the biomechanical load test compared to the DXA. The use of this method provides highly diagnostic information about bone quality. Since the approach was adjusted for THA, no harm of the lateral bone stock will result from this measurement during surgery. The results of this initial study employing small sample sizes indicate that this new method is as sensitive as DXA in predicting bone quality and may function as an intraoperative alternative to DXA in THA. Nevertheless, before this method will turn into clinical use, more research and clinical trials are necessary.

Analysis of trends in water-quality data for water conservation area 3A, the Everglades, Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mattraw, H.C.; Scheidt, D.J.; Federico, A.C.

1987-01-01

Rainfall and water quality data bases from the South Florida Water Management District were used to evaluate water quality trends at 10 locations near or in Water Conservation Area 3A in The Everglades. The Seasonal Kendall test was applied to specific conductance, orthophosphate-phosphorus, nitrate-nitrogen, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and total nitrogen regression residuals for the period 1978-82. Residuals of orthophosphate and nitrate quadratic models, based on antecedent 7-day rainfall at inflow gate S-11B, were the only two constituent-structure pairs that showed apparent significant (p < 0.05) increases in constituent concentrations. Elimination of regression models with distinct residual patterns and data outlines resulted in 17 statistically significant station water quality combinations for trend analysis. No water quality trends were observed. The 1979 Memorandum of Agreement outlining the water quality monitoring program between the Everglades National Park and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stressed collection four times a year at three stations, and extensive coverage of water quality properties. Trend analysis and other rigorous statistical evaluation programs are better suited to data monitoring programs that include more frequent sampling and that are organized in a water quality data management system. Pronounced areal differences in water quality suggest that a water quality monitoring system for Shark River Slough in Everglades National Park include collection locations near the source of inflow to Water Conservation Area 3A. (Author 's abstract)

Seasonality of selected surface water constituents in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida.

PubMed

Qian, Y; Migliaccio, K W; Wan, Y; Li, Y C; Chin, D

2007-01-01

Seasonality is often the major exogenous effect that must be compensated for or removed to discern trends in water quality. Our objective was to provide a methodological example of trend analysis using water quality data with seasonality. Selected water quality constituents from 1979 to 2004 at three monitoring stations in southern Florida were evaluated for seasonality. The seasonal patterns of flow-weighted and log-transformed concentrations were identified by applying side-by-side boxplots and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test (p < 0.05). Seasonal and annual trends were determined by trend analysis (Seasonal Kendall or Tobit procedure) using the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Estimate TREND (ESTREND) program. Major water quality indicators (specific conductivity, turbidity, color, and chloride), except for turbidity at Station C24S49, exhibited significant seasonal patterns. Almost all nutrient species (NO(2)-N, NH(4)-N, total Kjeldahl N, PO(4)-P, and total P) had an identical seasonal pattern of concentrations significantly greater in the wet than in the dry season. Some water quality constituents were observed to exhibit significant annual or seasonal trends. In some cases, the overall annual trend was insignificant while opposing trends were present in different seasons. By evaluating seasonal trends separately from all data, constituents can be assessed providing a more accurate interpretation of water quality trends.

Measuring the willingness to pay for drinking water quality improvements: results of a contingent valuation survey in Songzi, China.

PubMed

Jianjun, Jin; Wenyu, Wang; Ying, Fan; Xiaomin, Wang

2016-06-01

The aim of this study is to elicit local residents' willingness to pay (WTP), by applying the contingent valuation method as a surcharge on their water bill, for a given improvement in the drinking water quality and the supply reliability. The mean WTP for the drinking water quality improvement program was estimated to be 16.71 yuan (0.3% of total household income). The results note that more educated respondents and households with higher income and with fewer household members are, on average, willing to pay more. This study also demonstrates that respondents' concerns regarding drinking water quality and perceptions of the health risk of drinking water quality can have significant positive impacts on people's WTP. The research results can help decision-makers understand the local population's demand for improved drinking water quality and undertake an environmental cost-benefit analysis.

A hydrologic retention system and water quality monitoring program for a human decomposition research facility: concept and design.

PubMed

Wozniak, Jeffrey R; Thies, Monte L; Bytheway, Joan A; Lutterschmidt, William I

2015-01-01

Forensic taphonomy is an essential research field; however, the decomposition of human cadavers at forensic science facilities may lead to nutrient loading and the introduction of unique biological compounds to adjacent areas. The infrastructure of a water retention system may provide a mechanism for the biogeochemical processing and retention of nutrients and compounds, ensuring the control of runoff from forensic facilities. This work provides a proof of concept for a hydrologic retention system and an autonomous water quality monitoring program designed to mitigate runoff from The Southeast Texas Applied Forensic Science (STAFS) Facility. Water samples collected along a sample transect were analyzed for total phosphorous, total nitrogen, NO3-, NO2-, NH4, F(-), and Cl(-). Preliminary water quality analyses confirm the overall effectiveness of the water retention system. These results are discussed with relation to how this infrastructure can be expanded upon to monitor additional, more novel, byproducts of forensic science research facilities. © 2014 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Regression models to estimate real-time concentrations of selected constituents in two tributaries to Lake Houston near Houston, Texas, 2005-07

USGS Publications Warehouse

Oden, Timothy D.; Asquith, William H.; Milburn, Matthew S.

2009-01-01

In December 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the City of Houston, Texas, began collecting discrete water-quality samples for nutrients, total organic carbon, bacteria (total coliform and Escherichia coli), atrazine, and suspended sediment at two U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations upstream from Lake Houston near Houston (08068500 Spring Creek near Spring, Texas, and 08070200 East Fork San Jacinto River near New Caney, Texas). The data from the discrete water-quality samples collected during 2005-07, in conjunction with monitored real-time data already being collected - physical properties (specific conductance, pH, water temperature, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen), streamflow, and rainfall - were used to develop regression models for predicting water-quality constituent concentrations for inflows to Lake Houston. Rainfall data were obtained from a rain gage monitored by Harris County Homeland Security and Emergency Management and colocated with the Spring Creek station. The leaps and bounds algorithm was used to find the best subsets of possible regression models (minimum residual sum of squares for a given number of variables). The potential explanatory or predictive variables included discharge (streamflow), specific conductance, pH, water temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, rainfall, and time (to account for seasonal variations inherent in some water-quality data). The response variables at each site were nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, total phosphorus, organic carbon, Escherichia coli, atrazine, and suspended sediment. The explanatory variables provide easily measured quantities as a means to estimate concentrations of the various constituents under investigation, with accompanying estimates of measurement uncertainty. Each regression equation can be used to estimate concentrations of a given constituent in real time. In conjunction with estimated concentrations, constituent loads were estimated by multiplying the estimated concentration by the corresponding streamflow and applying the appropriate conversion factor. By computing loads from estimated constituent concentrations, a continuous record of estimated loads can be available for comparison to total maximum daily loads. The regression equations presented in this report are site specific to the Spring Creek and East Fork San Jacinto River streamflow-gaging stations; however, the methods that were developed and documented could be applied to other tributaries to Lake Houston for estimating real-time water-quality data for streams entering Lake Houston.

The journey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cohen, Lori A.

1995-12-01

Kodak Optical Products has embarked on a journey that will ultimately lead to manufacturing excellence and total customer satisfaction. With quality as our compass we have already obtained ISO 9001 and Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP) II certifications. Seeking and attaining these certifications enabled us to understand and enhance fundamentals relative to the operation of our business. This has provided a solid foundation from which we can launch continuous improvement activities. Now we continue our journey to such destinations as 10X reduction in both defects and cycle time, measuring and reducing our cost of poor quality, and upgrading our quality information system. Our presentation will emphasize our 10X improvement process and how it applies to high-volume production of precision plastic optics.

Effect of ultraviolet and far infrared radiation on microbial decontamination and quality of cumin seeds.

PubMed

Erdoğdu, S Belgin; Ekiz, H İbrahim

2011-01-01

Cumin seeds might be exposed to a high level of natural bacterial contamination, and this could potentially create a public health risk besides leading to problems in exportation. Ultraviolet (UVC) and far infrared (FIR) radiation has low penetration power, and due to that, there might be no detrimental defects to the products during a possible decontamination process. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of UVC and FIR treatment on microbial decontamination and quality of cumin seeds. For this purpose, FIR treatment at different exposure times and temperatures were applied followed by constant UVC treatment with an intensity of 10.5 mW/cm² for 2 h. Total mesophilic aerobic bacteria of the cumin seeds were decreased to the target level of 10⁴ CFU/g after 1.57, 2.8, and 4.8 min FIR treatment at 300, 250, and 200 °C, respectively, following a 2 h UVC treatment. Under the given conditions, a complete elimination for total yeast and molds were obtained while there were no significant changes in volatile oil content and color of the cumin seeds. Consequently, combined UVC and FIR treatment was determined to be a promising method for decontamination of the cumin seeds. This research attempts to apply UVC and far infrared (FIR) radiation for pasteurization of cumin seeds. The data suggested that combined UVC and FIR radiation treatments can become a promising new method for pasteurization of cumin seeds without causing any detrimental defect to the quality parameters. The results of this industry partnered (Kadioglu Baharat, Mersin, Turkey--http://www.kadioglubaharat.com) study were already applied in industrial scale production lines. © 2011 Institute of Food Technologists®

A Decision-Based Modified Total Variation Diffusion Method for Impulse Noise Removal

PubMed Central

Zhu, Qingxin; Song, Xiuli; Tao, Jinsong

2017-01-01

Impulsive noise removal usually employs median filtering, switching median filtering, the total variation L1 method, and variants. These approaches however often introduce excessive smoothing and can result in extensive visual feature blurring and thus are suitable only for images with low density noise. A new method to remove noise is proposed in this paper to overcome this limitation, which divides pixels into different categories based on different noise characteristics. If an image is corrupted by salt-and-pepper noise, the pixels are divided into corrupted and noise-free; if the image is corrupted by random valued impulses, the pixels are divided into corrupted, noise-free, and possibly corrupted. Pixels falling into different categories are processed differently. If a pixel is corrupted, modified total variation diffusion is applied; if the pixel is possibly corrupted, weighted total variation diffusion is applied; otherwise, the pixel is left unchanged. Experimental results show that the proposed method is robust to different noise strengths and suitable for different images, with strong noise removal capability as shown by PSNR/SSIM results as well as the visual quality of restored images. PMID:28536602

Effectiveness of land-based physiotherapy exercise following hospital discharge following hip arthroplasty for osteoarthritis: an updated systematic review.

PubMed

Lowe, Catherine J Minns; Davies, Linda; Sackley, Catherine M; Barker, Karen L

2015-09-01

Existing review required updating. To evaluate the effectiveness of physiotherapy exercise after discharge from hospital on function, walking, range of motion, quality of life and muscle strength, for patients following elective primary total hip arthroplasty for osteoarthritis. Systematic review from January 2007 to November 2013. AMED, CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Kingsfund Database, and PEDro. Cochrane CENTRAL, BioMed Central (BMC), The Department of Health National Research Register and Clinical Trials.gov register. Searches were overseen by a librarian. Authors were contacted for missing information. No language restrictions were applied. Trials comparing physiotherapy exercise vs usual/standard care, or comparing two types of relevant exercise physiotherapy, following discharge from hospital after elective primary total hip replacement for osteoarthritis were reviewed. Functional activities of daily living, walking, quality of life, muscle strength and joint range of motion. Quality and risk of bias for studies were evaluated. Data were extracted and meta-analyses considered. 11 trials are included in the review. Trial quality was mixed. Newly included studies were assessed as having lower risk of bias than previous studies. Narrative review indicates that physiotherapy exercise after discharge following total hip replacement may potentially benefit patients in terms of function, walking and muscle strengthening. The overall quality and quantity of trials, and their diversity, prevented meta-analyses. Disappointingly, insufficient evidence still prevents the effectiveness of physiotherapy exercise following discharge to be determined for this patient group. High quality, adequately powered, trials with long term follow up are required. Copyright © 2015 Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Closing the brain-to-brain loop in laboratory testing.

PubMed

Plebani, Mario; Lippi, Giuseppe

2011-07-01

Abstract The delivery of laboratory services has been described 40 years ago and defined with the foremost concept of "brain-to-brain turnaround time loop". This concept consists of several processes, including the final step which is the action undertaken on the patient based on laboratory information. Unfortunately, the need for systematic feedback to improve the value of laboratory services has been poorly understood and, even more risky, poorly applied in daily laboratory practice. Currently, major problems arise from the unavailability of consensually accepted quality specifications for the extra-analytical phase of laboratory testing. This, in turn, does not allow clinical laboratories to calculate a budget for the "patient-related total error". The definition and use of the term "total error" refers only to the analytical phase, and should be better defined as "total analytical error" to avoid any confusion and misinterpretation. According to the hierarchical approach to classify strategies to set analytical quality specifications, the "assessment of the effect of analytical performance on specific clinical decision-making" is comprehensively at the top and therefore should be applied as much as possible to address analytical efforts towards effective goals. In addition, an increasing number of laboratories worldwide are adopting risk management strategies such as FMEA, FRACAS, LEAN and Six Sigma since these techniques allow the identification of the most critical steps in the total testing process, and to reduce the patient-related risk of error. As a matter of fact, an increasing number of laboratory professionals recognize the importance of understanding and monitoring any step in the total testing process, including the appropriateness of the test request as well as the appropriate interpretation and utilization of test results.

Current pulse: can a production system reduce medical errors in health care?

PubMed

Printezis, Antonios; Gopalakrishnan, Mohan

2007-01-01

One of the reasons for rising health care costs is medical errors, a majority of which result from faulty systems and processes. Health care in the past has used process-based initiatives such as Total Quality Management, Continuous Quality Improvement, and Six Sigma to reduce errors. These initiatives to redesign health care, reduce errors, and improve overall efficiency and customer satisfaction have had moderate success. Current trend is to apply the successful Toyota Production System (TPS) to health care since its organizing principles have led to tremendous improvement in productivity and quality for Toyota and other businesses that have adapted them. This article presents insights on the effectiveness of TPS principles in health care and the challenges that lie ahead in successfully integrating this approach with other quality initiatives.

Alternative Fuels Data Center: State Alternative Fuel and Advanced Vehicle

Science.gov Websites

reduction (2 laws and regulations, 1 state incentive), and other (1 law/regulation) Figure 1. * Because an incentive, law, or regulation may apply to more than one technology type, adding the totals results in ), acquisition/fuel use (9), air quality/emissions (1), and other (13) Figure 3.* Because a law or regulation may

SSB taxes and diet quality in US preschoolers: estimated changes in the 2010 Healthy Eating Index.

PubMed

Ford, C N; Poti, J M; Ng, S W; Popkin, B M

2017-04-01

Taxing sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has been proposed as a strategy to combat child obesity. Yet it is unclear how a tax on SSBs might influence the overall quality of diet in preschool children. Thus, we use simulated price increases and the 2010 Healthy Eating Index (HEI-2010) to explore the relationship between SSB taxes and diet quality in preschool children. Price and purchase data from the 2009-2012 Nielsen Homescan Panel and a two-part marginal effects model were used to estimate relative changes in purchases with a 20% increase in the price of SSBs. Demand elasticities were applied to dietary intake data for children ages 2-5 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2009-2010 and 2011-2012) to estimate the impact of a 20% SSB tax on dietary intake and quality (HEI-2010). A 20% increase in the price of SSBs was associated with lower total caloric intake (-28 kcal d -1 , p < 0.01), caloric intake from juice drinks (-20 kcal d -1 , p < 0.01), added sugars (-4.1 servings d -1 , p = 0.03), refined grains (-0.63 servings d -1 , p < 0.01) and total meat (-0.56 servings d -1 , p < 0.01). Beneficial decreases in empty calories and refined grains were offset by unfavourable changes in fatty acid profile, total protein, vegetables and fruit, such that total HEI scores (0-100 range) were not meaningfully changed with a 20% increase in SSB price (difference: -0.85, p < 0.01). A 20% tax on SSBs could decrease caloric intake, and intakes of added sugars and SSBs, but may not improve diet quality as an isolated intervention among US preschool children. © 2016 World Obesity Federation.

Assessment of the Contribution of Dietary and Beverage Intake Quality to Obesity Development.

PubMed

Bilici, Saniye; Mortaş, Hande; Kocaadam, Betül; Köksal, Eda

2018-04-13

Low dietary quality is an important indicator of unhealthy eating patterns that can lead to some consequences such as obesity, so policy is a very powerful tool that can affect the consumption of both healthy and unhealthy foods. Indices that assess whether nutritional policies are applied contribute to the assessment of the quality of the population's diet. This study was conducted to investigate the quality of diets and beverages consumed by Turkish adults, and the factors affecting them. This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 352 adults aged between 18 and 58 years. The quality of diet and beverage was measured through the Healthy Eating Index-2010 (HEI) and Healthy Beverage Index (HBI), respectively, using 2-day (weekday and weekend) dietary recall data. The total HBI scores were 79.1 ± 11.8 and 81.0 ± 11.6; total HEI-2010 scores were 45.9 ± 12.3 and 52.3 ± 11.0, of men and women, respectively (p < 0.05). The women had significantly higher scores than that of the men in the HEI-2010 subcomponent of empty calories (p > 0.05). Sugar-sweetened beverage (HBI subcomponent) was significantly correlated with the scores of HEI-2010 and empty calorie (HEI-2010 subcomponent), as expected (p < 0.01). The caloric beverages contributed ∼133.6 kcal/d to the total caloric intake. The mean contribution of beverages to total daily energy intake of participants was found to be at the suggestion level. This result is rewarding when the relationship of sugar-sweetened beverages scores with the scores of HEI and empty calories is considered.

Impact of applied ultrasonic power on the low temperature drying of apple.

PubMed

Santacatalina, J V; Contreras, M; Simal, S; Cárcel, J A; Garcia-Perez, J V

2016-01-01

Low temperature drying (LTD) allows high-quality dried products to be obtained, preserving the nutritional properties of fresh foods better than conventional drying, but it is a time-consuming operation. Power ultrasound (US) could be used to intensify LTD, but it should be taken into account that process variables, such as the level of applied power, have an influence on the magnitude and extension of the ultrasonic effects. Therefore, the aim of this work was to assess the influence of the level of applied ultrasonic power on the LTD of apple, analyzing the drying kinetics and the quality of the dried product. For that purpose, apple (Malus domestica cv. Granny Smith) cubes (8.8mm side) were dried (2m/s) at two different temperatures (10 and -10°C), without and with (25, 50 and 75 W) US application. In the dried apple, the rehydration kinetics, hardness, total phenolic content, antioxidant capacity and microstructure were analyzed to evaluate the impact of the level of applied ultrasonic power. At both temperatures, 10 and -10°C, the higher the ultrasonic power level, the shorter the drying time; the maximum shortening of the drying time achieved was 80.3% (at -10°C and 75 W). The ultrasonic power level did not significantly (p<0.05) affect the quality parameters analyzed. Therefore, US could be considered a non-thermal method of intensifying the LTD of fruits, like apple, with only a mild impact on the quality of the dried product. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Regression model development and computational procedures to support estimation of real-time concentrations and loads of selected constituents in two tributaries to Lake Houston near Houston, Texas, 2005-9

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lee, Michael T.; Asquith, William H.; Oden, Timothy D.

2012-01-01

In December 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the City of Houston, Texas, began collecting discrete water-quality samples for nutrients, total organic carbon, bacteria (Escherichia coli and total coliform), atrazine, and suspended sediment at two USGS streamflow-gaging stations that represent watersheds contributing to Lake Houston (08068500 Spring Creek near Spring, Tex., and 08070200 East Fork San Jacinto River near New Caney, Tex.). Data from the discrete water-quality samples collected during 2005–9, in conjunction with continuously monitored real-time data that included streamflow and other physical water-quality properties (specific conductance, pH, water temperature, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen), were used to develop regression models for the estimation of concentrations of water-quality constituents of substantial source watersheds to Lake Houston. The potential explanatory variables included discharge (streamflow), specific conductance, pH, water temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and time (to account for seasonal variations inherent in some water-quality data). The response variables (the selected constituents) at each site were nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, total phosphorus, total organic carbon, E. coli, atrazine, and suspended sediment. The explanatory variables provide easily measured quantities to serve as potential surrogate variables to estimate concentrations of the selected constituents through statistical regression. Statistical regression also facilitates accompanying estimates of uncertainty in the form of prediction intervals. Each regression model potentially can be used to estimate concentrations of a given constituent in real time. Among other regression diagnostics, the diagnostics used as indicators of general model reliability and reported herein include the adjusted R-squared, the residual standard error, residual plots, and p-values. Adjusted R-squared values for the Spring Creek models ranged from .582–.922 (dimensionless). The residual standard errors ranged from .073–.447 (base-10 logarithm). Adjusted R-squared values for the East Fork San Jacinto River models ranged from .253–.853 (dimensionless). The residual standard errors ranged from .076–.388 (base-10 logarithm). In conjunction with estimated concentrations, constituent loads can be estimated by multiplying the estimated concentration by the corresponding streamflow and by applying the appropriate conversion factor. The regression models presented in this report are site specific, that is, they are specific to the Spring Creek and East Fork San Jacinto River streamflow-gaging stations; however, the general methods that were developed and documented could be applied to most perennial streams for the purpose of estimating real-time water quality data.

Accelerated Optical Projection Tomography Applied to In Vivo Imaging of Zebrafish

PubMed Central

Correia, Teresa; Yin, Jun; Ramel, Marie-Christine; Andrews, Natalie; Katan, Matilda; Bugeon, Laurence; Dallman, Margaret J.; McGinty, James; Frankel, Paul; French, Paul M. W.; Arridge, Simon

2015-01-01

Optical projection tomography (OPT) provides a non-invasive 3-D imaging modality that can be applied to longitudinal studies of live disease models, including in zebrafish. Current limitations include the requirement of a minimum number of angular projections for reconstruction of reasonable OPT images using filtered back projection (FBP), which is typically several hundred, leading to acquisition times of several minutes. It is highly desirable to decrease the number of required angular projections to decrease both the total acquisition time and the light dose to the sample. This is particularly important to enable longitudinal studies, which involve measurements of the same fish at different time points. In this work, we demonstrate that the use of an iterative algorithm to reconstruct sparsely sampled OPT data sets can provide useful 3-D images with 50 or fewer projections, thereby significantly decreasing the minimum acquisition time and light dose while maintaining image quality. A transgenic zebrafish embryo with fluorescent labelling of the vasculature was imaged to acquire densely sampled (800 projections) and under-sampled data sets of transmitted and fluorescence projection images. The under-sampled OPT data sets were reconstructed using an iterative total variation-based image reconstruction algorithm and compared against FBP reconstructions of the densely sampled data sets. To illustrate the potential for quantitative analysis following rapid OPT data acquisition, a Hessian-based method was applied to automatically segment the reconstructed images to select the vasculature network. Results showed that 3-D images of the zebrafish embryo and its vasculature of sufficient visual quality for quantitative analysis can be reconstructed using the iterative algorithm from only 32 projections—achieving up to 28 times improvement in imaging speed and leading to total acquisition times of a few seconds. PMID:26308086

Effect of aromatherapy via inhalation on the sleep quality and fatigue level in people undergoing hemodialysis.

PubMed

Muz, Gamze; Taşcı, Sultan

2017-10-01

The most common problems in hemodialysis patients are sleep disorders and fatigue. This randomized-controlled experimental study was conducted to determine the effect of aromatherapy applied by inhalation on sleep quality and fatigue level in hemodialysis patients. The study was completed in five hemodialysis centers settled in two provinces with 27 intervention group patients and 35 controls, being totally 62 patients, recruited with simple randomization. Ethical approval, informed consent from the individuals and institutional permission were obtained. Data were collected with a questionnaire form and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for fatigue, Piper fatigue scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and follow-up forms for the patient and the researcher. Aromatherapy inhalation (sweet orange and lavender oil) was performed before going to bed every day for one month to the intervention group patients. No other application has been made to the control group patients except for standard hemodialysis treatment. All of the forms were performed at baseline and at follow-up at the end of the four weeks (baseline and last follow-up), VAS and Piper fatigue scale were performed during follow-ups at the end of every week (the first, second and third follow-ups). Data were statistically analyzed with Independent Samples t-test, one way analysis of variance, Pearson correlation analysis, chi-square test, Friedman and Mann Whitney U tests and Bonferroni test. p<0.05 was set as statistically significant in comparisons. Mean total and sub-dimension scores of VAS, Piper fatigue scale and PSQI (except for daytime sleepiness dysfunction sub-dimension) of the intervention and control groups at baseline were not significantly different (p>0.05). It was found that mean total and sub-dimension scores of VAS, Piper fatigue scale and PSQI of the intervention group significantly decreased in other follow-ups compared to the control group (p<0.05). Consequently, it was determined that aromatherapy applied by inhalation improved sleep quality, decreased fatigue level and severity in hemodialysis patients. Accordingly, aromatherapy prepared with sweet orange and lavender oil may be recommended to increase sleep quality and to decrease fatigue level of the hemodialysis patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Method for optimizing resource allocation in a government organization. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Afarin, James

1994-01-01

The managers in Federal agencies are challenged to control the extensive activities in government and still provide high-quality products and services to the American taxpayers. Considering today's complex social and economic environment and the $3.8 billion daily cost of operating the Federal Government, it is evident that there is a need to develop decision-making tools for accurate resource allocation and total quality management. The goal of this thesis is to provide a methodical process that will aid managers in Federal Government to make budgetary decisions based on the cost of services, the agency's objectives, and the customers' perception of the agency's product. A general resource allocation procedure was developed in this study that can be applied to any government organization. A government organization, hereafter the 'organization,' is assumed to be a multidivision enterprise. This procedure was applied to a small organization for the proof of the concept. This organization is the Technical Services Directorate (TSD) at the NASA Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. As part of the procedure, a nonlinear programming model was developed to account for the resources of the organization, the outputs produced by the organization, the decision-maker's views, and the customers' satisfaction with the organization. The information on the resources of the organization was acquired from current budget levels of the organization and the human resources assigned to the divisions. The outputs of the organization were defined and measured by identifying metrics that assess the outputs, the most challenging task in this study. The decision-maker's views are represented in the model as weights assigned to the various outputs and were quantified by using the analytic hierarchy process. The customer's opinions regarding the outputs of the organization were collected through questionnaires that were designed for each division individually. Following the philosophy of total quality management, information on customers' satisfaction is presented in the model as the quality of output. The model is a nonlinear one whose objective is to maximize customers' satisfaction such that the total cost of operation does not exceed the organization's budget. This model represents a structured approach or policy mechanism, at the agency level, to make capital investment decisions based on the priorities of the agency and the quality of outputs. This procedure applied to TSD resulted in a resources allocation scheme that was reasonable and acceptable to the decision-makers and, as expected, dependent on the assumptions and accuracy of the data used in the model.

Assessment of irrigation water quality. A proposal of a quality profile.

PubMed

Almeida, César; Quintar, Silvya; González, Patricia; Mallea, Miguel

2008-07-01

Water quality indices provide a simple and understandable tool for managers on the quality and possible uses for irrigation water, however an individual quality factor alone is not enough to evaluate the irrigation water quality because it could be restrictive and sometime it could give an unfavorable qualification. The aim of this paper was propose a quality profile of irrigation water using the preexisting water quality indices to be applied to arid and semi-arid regions. As a case studied, the water of the Del Molle River (Nogolí, San Luis, Argentina) was researched. Samples were collected during the period October 2005-May 2006. Conductivity, pH, total hardness, sulphate, nitrate, nitrite, alkalinity, chloride, sodium, potassium, TDS, DO and phosphate were analyzed. The irrigation water quality, according to Riverside Norm, belongs to C(2)-S(1) class, according to Wilcox Norm as excellent to good, according to Scott quality factor it is good and according to SAR < 10 and according to RCS it is recommendable. From the obtained data, it can be concluded that the water quality profile was good, so it is useful for normal irrigation agriculture.

[Studies on preparative technology and quantitative determination for extracts of total saponin in roof of Panax japonicus].

PubMed

He, Yu-min; Lu, Ke-ming; Yuan, Ding; Zhang, Chang-cheng

2008-11-01

To explore the optimum extraction and purification condition of the total saponins in the root of Panax japonicus (RPJ), and establish its quality control methods. Designed L16 (4(5)) orthogonal test with the extraction rate of total saponins as index, to determine the rational extraction process, and the techniques of water-saturated n-butanol extraction and acetone precipitation were applied to purify the alcohol extract of RPJ. Total saponins were detected by spectrophotometry and its triterpenoidal sapogenin oleanolic acid detected by HPLC. The optimum conditions of total saponins from RPJ was as follows: the material was pulverized, dipped in 60% ethanol aqueous solution as extract solvent at 10 times of volume, and refluxed 3 times for 3 h each time. Extractant of water-saturated n-butanol with extraction times of 3 and precipitant of acetone with precipitation amount of 4-5 times were included in the purification process, which would obtain the quality products. The content of total saponins could reach to 83.48%, and oleanolic acid to 38.30%. The optimized preparative technology is stable, convenient and practical. The extract rate of RPJ was high and steady with this technology, which provided new evidence for industrializing production of the plant and developing new drug.

A regional classification scheme for estimating reference water quality in streams using land-use-adjusted spatial regression-tree analysis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Robertson, Dale M.; Saad, D.A.; Heisey, D.M.

2006-01-01

Various approaches are used to subdivide large areas into regions containing streams that have similar reference or background water quality and that respond similarly to different factors. For many applications, such as establishing reference conditions, it is preferable to use physical characteristics that are not affected by human activities to delineate these regions. However, most approaches, such as ecoregion classifications, rely on land use to delineate regions or have difficulties compensating for the effects of land use. Land use not only directly affects water quality, but it is often correlated with the factors used to define the regions. In this article, we describe modifications to SPARTA (spatial regression-tree analysis), a relatively new approach applied to water-quality and environmental characteristic data to delineate zones with similar factors affecting water quality. In this modified approach, land-use-adjusted (residualized) water quality and environmental characteristics are computed for each site. Regression-tree analysis is applied to the residualized data to determine the most statistically important environmental characteristics describing the distribution of a specific water-quality constituent. Geographic information for small basins throughout the study area is then used to subdivide the area into relatively homogeneous environmental water-quality zones. For each zone, commonly used approaches are subsequently used to define its reference water quality and how its water quality responds to changes in land use. SPARTA is used to delineate zones of similar reference concentrations of total phosphorus and suspended sediment throughout the upper Midwestern part of the United States. ?? 2006 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.

Prior Image Constrained Compressed Sensing Metal Artifact Reduction (PICCS-MAR): 2D and 3D Image Quality Improvement with Hip Prostheses at CT Colonography.

PubMed

Bannas, Peter; Li, Yinsheng; Motosugi, Utaroh; Li, Ke; Lubner, Meghan; Chen, Guang-Hong; Pickhardt, Perry J

2016-07-01

To assess the effect of the prior-image-constrained-compressed-sensing-based metal-artefact-reduction (PICCS-MAR) algorithm on streak artefact reduction and 2D and 3D-image quality improvement in patients with total hip arthroplasty (THA) undergoing CT colonography (CTC). PICCS-MAR was applied to filtered-back-projection (FBP)-reconstructed DICOM CTC-images in 52 patients with THA (unilateral, n = 30; bilateral, n = 22). For FBP and PICCS-MAR series, ROI-measurements of CT-numbers were obtained at predefined levels for fat, muscle, air, and the most severe artefact. Two radiologists independently reviewed 2D and 3D CTC-images and graded artefacts and image quality using a five-point-scale (1 = severe streak/no-diagnostic confidence, 5 = no streak/excellent image-quality, high-confidence). Results were compared using paired and unpaired t-tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank and Mann-Whitney-tests. Streak artefacts and image quality scores for FBP versus PICCS-MAR 2D-images (median: 1 vs. 3 and 2 vs. 3, respectively) and 3D images (median: 2 vs. 4 and 3 vs. 4, respectively) showed significant improvement after PICCS-MAR (all P < 0.001). PICCS-MAR significantly improved the accuracy of mean CT numbers for fat, muscle and the area with the most severe artefact (all P < 0.001). PICCS-MAR substantially reduces streak artefacts related to THA on DICOM images, thereby enhancing visualization of anatomy on 2D and 3D CTC images and increasing diagnostic confidence. • PICCS-MAR significantly reduces streak artefacts associated with total hip arthroplasty on 2D and 3D CTC. • PICCS-MAR significantly improves 2D and 3D CTC image quality and diagnostic confidence. • PICCS-MAR can be applied retrospectively to DICOM images from single-kVp CT.

Influence of the washing program on the blood processing performance of a continuous autotransfusion device.

PubMed

Yoon, Chiyul; Noh, Seungwoo; Lee, Jung Chan; Ko, Sung Ho; Ahn, Wonsik; Kim, Hee Chan

2014-03-01

The continuous autotransfusion system has been widely used in surgical operations. It is known that if oil is added to blood, and this mixture is then processed by an autotransfusion device, the added oil is removed and reinfusion of fat is prevented by the device. However, there is no detailed report on the influence of the particular washing program selected on the levels of blood components including blood fat after continuous autotransfusion using such a system. Fresh bovine blood samples were processed by a commercial continuous autotransfusion device using the "emergency," "quality," and "high-quality" programs, applied in random order. Complete blood count (CBC) and serum chemistry were analyzed to determine how the blood processing performance of the device changes with the washing program applied. There was no significant difference in the CBC results obtained with the three washing programs. Although all of the blood lipids in the processed blood were decreased compared to those in the blood before processing, the levels of triglyceride, phospholipid, and total cholesterol after processing via the emergency program were significantly higher than those present after processing via the quality and high-quality programs. Although the continuous autotransfusion device provided consistent hematocrit quality, the levels of some blood lipid components showed significant differences among the washing programs.

A measure of the signal-to-noise ratio of microarray samples and studies using gene correlations.

PubMed

Venet, David; Detours, Vincent; Bersini, Hugues

2012-01-01

The quality of gene expression data can vary dramatically from platform to platform, study to study, and sample to sample. As reliable statistical analysis rests on reliable data, determining such quality is of the utmost importance. Quality measures to spot problematic samples exist, but they are platform-specific, and cannot be used to compare studies. As a proxy for quality, we propose a signal-to-noise ratio for microarray data, the "Signal-to-Noise Applied to Gene Expression Experiments", or SNAGEE. SNAGEE is based on the consistency of gene-gene correlations. We applied SNAGEE to a compendium of 80 large datasets on 37 platforms, for a total of 24,380 samples, and assessed the signal-to-noise ratio of studies and samples. This allowed us to discover serious issues with three studies. We show that signal-to-noise ratios of both studies and samples are linked to the statistical significance of the biological results. We showed that SNAGEE is an effective way to measure data quality for most types of gene expression studies, and that it often outperforms existing techniques. Furthermore, SNAGEE is platform-independent and does not require raw data files. The SNAGEE R package is available in BioConductor.

Detecting When “Quality of Life” Has Been “Enhanced”: Estimating Change in Quality of Life Ratings

PubMed Central

Tractenberg, Rochelle E.; Yumoto, Futoshi; Aisen, Paul S.

2015-01-01

Objective To demonstrate challenges in the estimation of change in quality of life (QOL). Methods Data were taken from a completed clinical trial with negative results. Responses to 13 QOL items were obtained 12 months apart from 258 persons with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) participating in a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial with two treatment arms. Two analyses to estimate whether “change” in QOL occurred over 12 months are described. A simple difference (later - earlier) was calculated from total scores (standard approach). A Qualified Change algorithm (novel approach) was applied to each item: differences in ratings were classified as either: improved, worsened, stayed poor, or stayed “positive” (fair, good, excellent). The strengths of evidence supporting a claim that “QOL changed”, derived from the two analyses, were compared by considering plausible alternative explanations for, and interpretations of, results obtained under each approach. Results Total score approach: QOL total scores decreased, on average, in the two treatment (both −1.0, p < 0.05), but not the placebo (=−0.59, p > 0.3) groups. Qualified change approach: Roughly 60% of all change in QOL items was worsening in every arm; 17% - 42% of all subjects experienced change in each item. Conclusions Totalling the subjective QOL item ratings collapses over items, and suggests a potentially misleading “overall” level of change (or no change, as in the placebo arm). Leaving the items as individual components of “quality” of life they were intended to capture, and qualifying the direction and amount of change in each, suggests that at least 17% of any group experienced change on every item, with 60% of all observed change being worsening. Discussion Summarizing QOL item ratings as a total “score” collapses over the face-valid, multi-dimensional components of the construct “quality of life”. Qualified Change provides robust evidence of changes to QOL or “enhancements of” life quality. PMID:26213645

Estimating quality weights for EQ-5D health states with the time trade-off method in South Korea.

PubMed

Jo, Min-Woo; Yun, Sung-Cheol; Lee, Sang-Il

2008-12-01

To estimate quality weights of EQ-5D health states with the time trade-off (TTO) method in the general population of South Korea. A total of 500 respondents valued 42 hypothetical EQ-5D health states using the TTO and visual analog scale. The quality weights for all EQ-5D health states were estimated by a random effects model and compared with those from studies in other countries. Overall estimated quality weights for all EQ-5D health states from this study were highly correlated with those from previous studies, but quality weights of individual states were substantially different from those of their corresponding states in other studies. The Korean value set differed from value sets from other countries. Special caution is needed when a value set from one country is applied to another with a different culture.

Computer-oriented emissions inventory procedure for urban and industrial sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Runca, E.; Zannetti, P.; Melli, P.

1978-06-01

A knowledge of the rate of emission of atmospheric pollutants is essential for the enforcement of air quality control policies. A computer-oriented emission inventory procedure has been developed and applied to Venice, Italy. By using optically readable forms this procedure avoids many of the errors inherent in the transcription and punching steps typical of approaches applied so far. Moreover, this procedure allows an easy updating of the inventory. Emission patterns of SO/sub 2/ in the area of Venice showed that the total urban emissions were about 6% of those emitted by industrial sources.

Prospective evaluation of the impact of covert hepatic encephalopathy on quality of life and sleep in cirrhotic patients.

PubMed

Labenz, C; Baron, J S; Toenges, G; Schattenberg, J M; Nagel, M; Sprinzl, M F; Nguyen-Tat, M; Zimmermann, T; Huber, Y; Marquardt, J U; Galle, P R; Wörns, M-A

2018-06-04

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (HE) and HE grade 1 (HE1) according to the West Haven criteria have recently been grouped as one entity named-covert HE- (CHE). Data regarding the impact of CHE on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and sleep quality are controversial. First, to determine whether CHE affects HRQoL and sleep quality of cirrhotic patients and second, whether minimal HE (MHE) and HE1 affect HRQoL and sleep quality to a comparable extent. A total of 145 consecutive cirrhotic patients were enrolled. HE1 was diagnosed clinically according to the West Haven criteria. Critical flicker frequency and the Psychometric Hepatic Encephalopathy Score were used to detect MHE. Chronic Liver Disease Questionnaire (CLDQ) was used to assess HRQoL and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was applied to assess sleep quality. Covert HE was detected in 59 (40.7%) patients (MHE: n = 40; HE1: n = 19). Multivariate analysis identified CHE (P < 0.001) and female gender (P = 0.006) as independent predictors of reduced HRQoL (CLDQ total score). CHE (P = 0.021), low haemoglobin (P = 0.024) and female gender (P = 0.003) were identified as independent predictors of poor sleep quality (PSQI total score). Results of CLDQ and PSQI were comparable in patients with HE1 and MHE (CLDQ: 4.6 ± 0.9 vs 4.5 ± 1.2, P = 0.907; PSQI: 11.3 ± 3.8 vs 9.9 ± 5.0, P = 0.3). Covert HE was associated with impaired HRQoL and sleep quality. MHE and HE1 affected both outcomes to a comparable extent supporting the use of CHE as a clinically useful term for patients with both entities of HE in clinical practice. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Control by quality: proposition of a typology.

PubMed

Pujo, P; Pillet, M

The application of Quality tools and methods in industrial management has always had a fundamental impact on the control of production. It influences the behavior of the actors concerned, while introducing the necessary notions and formalizations, especially for production systems with little or no automation, which constitute a large part of the industrial activity. Several quality approaches are applied in the workshop and are implemented at the level of the control. In this paper, the authors present a typology of the various approaches that have successively influenced control, such as statistical process control, quality assurance, and continuous improvement. First the authors present a parallel between production control and quality organizational structure. They note the duality between control, which is aimed at increasing productivity, and quality, which aims to satisfy the needs of the customer. They also note the hierarchical organizational structure of these two systems of management with, at each level, the notion of a feedback loop. This notion is fundamental to any kind of decision making. The paper is organized around the operational, tactical, and strategic levels, by describing for each level the main methods and tools for control by quality. The overview of these tools and methods starts at the operational level, with the Statistical Process Control, the Taguchi technique, and the "six sigma" approach. On the tactical level, we find a quality system approach, with a documented description of the procedures introduced in the firm. The management system can refer here to Quality Assurance, Total Productive Maintenance, or Management by Total Quality. The formalization through procedures of the rules of decision governing the process control enhances the validity of these rules. This leads to the enhancement of their reliability and to their consolidation. All this counterbalances the human, intrinsically fluctuating, behavior of the control operators. Strategic control by quality is then detailed, and the two main approaches, the continuous improvement approach and the proactive improvement approach, are introduced. Finally, the authors observe that at each of the three levels, the continuous process improvement, which is a component of Total Quality, becomes an essential preoccupation for the control. Ultimately, the recursive utilization of the Deming cycle remains the best practice for the control by quality.

QUALITY OF LIFE AFTER VERTICAL GASTRECTOMY EVALUATED BY THE BAROS QUESTIONNAIRE

PubMed Central

VARGAS, Guilherme Pedroso; MENDES, Giselle Abigail; Pinto, Rinaldo Danesi

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Background : The satisfactory outcome in the surgical treatment of obesity must include, in addition to weight loss, a significant change in the pre-existing comorbidities and in the quality of life of the patients. Aim : To evaluate the quality of life in the late postoperative period in patients that underwent videolaparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Methods : Was applied the questionnaire “Bariatric Analysis and Reporting Outcome System” (BAROS) in patients that underwent videolaparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Results : A total of 47 patients between 21-60 years old were evaluated. The total mean of the BMI before surgery was 43.06±5.87 kg/m². The average percentage of the reduction of excess weight after surgery was 85.46±23.6%. The score obtained by patients in the questionnaire about the improvement in the quality of life showed excellent (36.17%), very good (40.43%), good (21.28%) and reasonable (2.13%) results. There was clinical improvement after surgery in all comorbidities investigated. Conclusion : BAROS showed excellent results in 36.17%, very good in 40.43%, good in 21.28% and reasonable in 2.13%. The weight loss was critical to improve the quality of life and offered the resolution or clinical improvement in all of the investigated comorbidities. PMID:29340547

Selected papers in the hydrologic sciences, 1986

USGS Publications Warehouse

Subitzky, Seymour

1987-01-01

Water-quality data from long-term (24 years), fixed- station monitoring at the Cape Fear River at Lock 1 near Kelly, N.C., and various measures of basin development are correlated. Subbasin population, number of acres of cropland in the subbasin, number of people employed in manufacturing, and tons of fertilizer applied in the basin are considered as measures of basinwide development activity. Linear correlations show statistically significant posi- tive relations between both population and manufacturing activity and most of the dissolved constituents considered. Negative correlations were found between the acres of harvested cropland and most of the water-quality measures. The amount of fertilizer sold in the subbasin was not statistically related to the water-quality measures considered in this report. The statistical analysis was limited to several commonly used measures of water quality including specific conductance, pH, dissolved solids, several major dissolved ions, and a few nutrients. The major dissolved ions included in the analysis were calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, sulfate, silica, bicarbonate, and fluoride. The nutrients included were dissolved nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, dissolved ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, dissolved phosphates, and total phosphorus. For the chemicals evaluated, manufacturing and population sources are more closely associated with water quality in the Cape Fear River at Lock 1 than are agricultural variables.

Volatile profile analysis and quality prediction of Longjing tea (Camellia sinensis) by HS-SPME/GC-MS

PubMed Central

Lin, Jie; Dai, Yi; Guo, Ya-nan; Xu, Hai-rong; Wang, Xiao-chang

2012-01-01

This study aimed to analyze the volatile chemical profile of Longjing tea, and further develop a prediction model for aroma quality of Longjing tea based on potent odorants. A total of 21 Longjing samples were analyzed by headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Pearson’s linear correlation analysis and partial least square (PLS) regression were applied to investigate the relationship between sensory aroma scores and the volatile compounds. Results showed that 60 volatile compounds could be commonly detected in this famous green tea. Terpenes and esters were two major groups characterized, representing 33.89% and 15.53% of the total peak area respectively. Ten compounds were determined to contribute significantly to the perceived aroma quality of Longjing tea, especially linalool (0.701), nonanal (0.738), (Z)-3-hexenyl hexanoate (−0.785), and β-ionone (−0.763). On the basis of these 10 compounds, a model (correlation coefficient of 89.4% and cross-validated correlation coefficient of 80.4%) was constructed to predict the aroma quality of Longjing tea. Summarily, this study has provided a novel option for quality prediction of green tea based on HS-SPME/GC-MS technique. PMID:23225852

Method for estimating pesticide use for county areas of the conterminous United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thelin, Gail P.; Gianessi, Leonard P.

2000-01-01

Information on the amount and distribution of pesticide compounds used throughout the United States is essential to evaluate the relation between water quality and pesticide use. This information is the basis of the U.S. Geological Survey?s National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program studies of the effects of pesticides on water quality in 57 major hydrologic systems, or study units, located throughout the conterminous United States. To support these studies, a method was devised to estimate county pesticide use for the conterminous United States by combining (1) state-level information on pesticide use rates available from the National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy, and (2) county-level information on harvested crop acreage from the Census of Agriculture. The average annual pesticide use, the total amount of pesticides applied (in pounds), and the corresponding area treated (in acres) were compiled for the 208 pesticide compounds that are applied to crops in the conterminous United States. Pesticide use was ranked by compound and crop on the basis of the amount of each compound applied to 86 selected crops. Tabular summaries of pesticide use for NAWQA study units and for the Nation were prepared, along with maps that show the distribution of selected pesticides to agricultural land.

Evaluating a preventive biological control agent applied on grapevines against Botrytis cinerea and its influence on winemaking.

PubMed

Escribano-Viana, Rocío; Portu, Javier; Garijo, Patrocinio; Gutiérrez, Ana Rosa; Santamaría, Pilar; López-Alfaro, Isabel; López, Rosa; González-Arenzana, Lucía

2018-02-25

This research was aimed to study the influence on grape and wine quality and on the fermentation processes of the application of a preventive biological treatment against Botrytis cinerea in Tempranillo Rioja grapevines. For this purpose, a biofungicide containing Bacillus subtilis QST713 was applied twice to the vineyard. Results were compared with non-treated samples from the same vineyard and with samples treated with a chemical fungicide composed of fenhexamid. Data showed that general grape quality and spontaneous alcoholic fermentation performance were not influenced by either fungicide application. The chemical fungicide had a considerable influence on the clonal diversity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae species, which led to the alcoholic fermentation. Furthermore, it caused longer malolactic fermentation than with the biological fungicide and in the control. The biofungicide made malolactic fermentation 1 day shorter because the establishment of the commercial lactic acid bacteria used as a starter culture was total. After malolactic fermentation, the wines did not show significant differences in general oenological parameters. Preventive biofungicide treatment against B. cinerea did not negatively influence the quality of grapes and wines and the fermentation processes. Therefore, biological control of B. cinerea with B. subtilis applied on grapevines could be advisable in oenological terms. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

MOnthly TEmperature DAtabase of Spain 1951-2010: MOTEDAS. (1) Quality control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peña-Angulo, Dhais; Cortesi, Nicola; Simolo, Claudia; Stepanek, Peter; Brunetti, Michele; González-Hidalgo, José Carlos

2014-05-01

The HIDROCAES project (Impactos Hidrológicos del Calentamiento Global en España, Spanish Ministery of Research CGL2011-27574-C02-01) is focused on the high resolution in the Spanish continental land of the warming processes during the 1951-2010. To do that the Department of Geography (University of Zaragoza, Spain), the Hydrometeorological Service (Brno Division, Chezck Republic) and the ISAC-CNR (Bologna, Italy) are developing the new dataset MOTEDAS (MOnthly TEmperature DAtabase of Spain), from which we present a collection of poster to show (1) the general structure of dataset and quality control; (2) the analyses of spatial correlation of monthly mean values of maximum (Tmax) and minimum (Tmin temperature; (3) the reconstruction processes of series and high resolution grid developing; (4) the first initial results of trend analyses of annual, seasonal and monthly range mean values. MOTEDAS has been created after exhaustive analyses and quality control of the original digitalized data of the Spanish National Meteorological Agency (Agencia Estatal de Meteorología, AEMET). Quality control was applied without any prior reconstruction, i.e. on original series. Then, from the total amount of series stored at AEMet archives (more than 4680) we selected only those series with at least 10 years of data (i.e. 120 months, 3066 series) to apply a quality control and reconstruction processes (see Poster MOTEDAS 3). Length of series was Tmin, upper and lower thresholds of absolute data, etc), and by comparison with reference series (see Poster MOTEDAS 3, about reconstruction). Anomalous data were considered when difference between Candidate and Reference series were higher than three times the interquartile distance. The total amount of monthly suspicious data recognized and discarded at the end of this analyses was 7832 data for Tmin, and 8063 for Tmax data; they represent less than 0,8% of original total monthly data, for both Tmax and Tmin. No spatial pattern was detected in the suspicious data; month by month Tmin shows maximum detection in summer months, while Tmax does not show any monthly pattern. Secondly, the homogeneity analyses was performed on the list of series free of anomalous data by using an arrays of test (SNHT, Bivariate, T de Student and Pettit) after new reference series calculated with data free of anomalous. The tests were applied at monthly, seasonal and annual scale (i.e. 17 times per method). Statistical inhomogeneity detections were accepted as follows: Three annual detections (monthly, seasonal, annual) must be found in SNHT or Bivariate test. The total amount of detections by the four tests was greater than 5% of the total possible detection per year. Before any correction we examined the Candidate and reference series chart. Proclim and Anclim software were used during all the processes The total amount of series affected by inhomogeneities was 1013 (Tmax) and 1011 (Tmin), i.e. 1/3 of original series was considered as inhomogeneous. We notice that identified inhomogeneous series in Tmax and Tmin usually do not coincide. This apparently small amount of series compared with previous work could be originated because of the mean length of series is around 15-20 years. References. Stepánek P. 2008a. AnClim - software for time series analysis (for Windows 95/NT). Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, MU, Brno, 1.47 B. Stepánek P.. 2008b. ProClimDB - Software for Processing Climatological Datasets. CHMI, Regional office, Brno.

Welfare standards in hospital mergers.

PubMed

Katona, Katalin; Canoy, Marcel

2013-08-01

There is a broad literature on the consequences of applying different welfare standards in merger control. Total welfare is usually defined as the sum of consumer and provider surplus, i.e., potential external effects are not considered. The general result is then that consumer welfare is a more restrictive standard than total welfare, which is advantageous in certain situations. This relationship between the two standards is not necessarily true when the merger has significant external effects. We model mergers on hospital markets and allow for not-profit-maximizing behavior of providers and mandatory health insurance. Mandatory health insurance detaches the financial and consumption side of health care markets, and the concept consumer in merger control becomes non-evident. Patients not visiting the merging hospitals still are affected by price changes through their insurance premiums. External financial effects emerge on not directly affected consumers. We show that applying a restricted interpretation of consumer (neglecting externality) in health care merger control can reverse the relation between the two standards; consumer welfare standard can be weaker than total welfare. Consequently, applying the wrong standard can lead to both clearing socially undesirable and to blocking socially desirable mergers. The possible negative consequences of applying a simple consumer welfare standard in merger control can be even stronger when hospitals maximize quality and put less weight on financial considerations. We also investigate the implications of these results for the practice of merger control.

Use of fish species from different trophic levels to control algae and water quality: An enclosure experiment in eutrophic area of Xiaojiang River.

PubMed

Hu, Lian; Yang, Zhi; Pan, Xiaojie; Zhao, Na; Peng, Jianhua; Wan, Chengyan

2017-01-01

The effects of stocking both filter-feeding fish and piscivorous fish were compared to the effects of stocking only filter-feeding fish for suppressing algal blooms and improving water quality in the impoundment area of Xiaojiang River where catfish were dominant. Using only filter-feeding fish for algal suppression and water quality control was more effective in the short-term, but use of both filter-feeding fish and piscivorous fish was better in the long-term. Obvious suppression of phytoplankton biomass (PB) only occurred during the first 14 days regardless of the fish stocked. Adding fish to the enclosure clearly alters phytoplankton community structure and introducing piscivorous fish to an enclosure stocked with filter-feeding fish changed the relative densities of dominant algae species. While stocking filter-feeding fish decreased total nitrogen concentration by removing phytoplankton, it did not effectively decrease total phosphorus and Chlorophyll a concentrations. Introducing piscivorous fish to the enclosure weakened the relationship between nutrients and phytoplankton. Results indicate that stocking only filter-feeding fish to improve water quality and suppress phytoplankton in an impoundment area is insufficient and other technologies and means should be applied simultaneously.

Evaluating treatment process redesign by applying the EFQM Excellence Model.

PubMed

Nabitz, Udo; Schramade, Mark; Schippers, Gerard

2006-10-01

To evaluate a treatment process redesign programme implementing evidence-based treatment as part of a total quality management in a Dutch addiction treatment centre. Quality management was monitored over a period of more than 10 years in an addiction treatment centre with 550 professionals. Changes are evaluated, comparing the scores on the nine criteria of the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Excellence Model before and after a major redesign of treatment processes and ISO certification. In the course of 10 years, most intake, care, and cure processes were reorganized, the support processes were restructured and ISO certified, 29 evidence-based treatment protocols were developed and implemented, and patient follow-up measuring was established to make clinical outcomes transparent. Comparing the situation before and after the changes shows that the client satisfaction scores are stable, that the evaluation by personnel and society is inconsistent, and that clinical, production, and financial outcomes are positive. The overall EFQM assessment by external assessors in 2004 shows much higher scores on the nine criteria than the assessment in 1994. Evidence-based treatment can successfully be implemented in addiction treatment centres through treatment process redesign as part of a total quality management strategy, but not all results are positive.

Modelling spatio-temporal heterogeneities in groundwater quality in Ghana: a multivariate chemometric approach.

PubMed

Armah, Frederick Ato; Paintsil, Arnold; Yawson, David Oscar; Adu, Michael Osei; Odoi, Justice O

2017-08-01

Chemometric techniques were applied to evaluate the spatial and temporal heterogeneities in groundwater quality data for approximately 740 goldmining and agriculture-intensive locations in Ghana. The strongest linear and monotonic relationships occurred between Mn and Fe. Sixty-nine per cent of total variance in the dataset was explained by four variance factors: physicochemical properties, bacteriological quality, natural geologic attributes and anthropogenic factors (artisanal goldmining). There was evidence of significant differences in means of all trace metals and physicochemical parameters (p < 0.001) between goldmining and non-goldmining locations. Arsenic and turbidity produced very high value F's demonstrating that 'physical properties and chalcophilic elements' was the function that most discriminated between non-goldmining and goldmining locations. Variations in Escherichia coli and total coliforms were observed between the dry and wet seasons. The overall predictive accuracy of the discriminant function showed that non-goldmining locations were classified with slightly better accuracy (89%) than goldmining areas (69.6%). There were significant differences between the underlying distributions of Cd, Mn and Pb in the wet and dry seasons. This study emphasizes the practicality of chemometrics in the assessment and elucidation of complex water quality datasets to promote effective management of groundwater resources for sustaining human health.

Effect of wheat flour characteristics on sponge cake quality.

PubMed

Moiraghi, Malena; de la Hera, Esther; Pérez, Gabriela T; Gómez, Manuel

2013-02-01

To select the flour parameters that relate strongly to cake-making performance, in this study the relationship between sponge cake quality, solvent retention capacity (SRC) profile and flour physicochemical characteristics was investigated using 38 soft wheat samples of different origins. Particle size average, protein, damaged starch, water-soluble pentosans, total pentosans, SRC and pasting properties were analysed. Sponge cake volume and crumb texture were measured to evaluate cake quality. Cluster analysis was applied to assess differences in flour quality parameters among wheat lines based on the SRC profile. Cluster 1 showed significantly higher sponge cake volume and crumb softness, finer particle size and lower SRC sucrose, SRC carbonate, SRC water, damaged starch and protein content. Particle size, damaged starch, protein, thickening capacity and SRC parameters correlated negatively with sponge cake volume, while total pentosans and pasting temperature showed the opposite effect. The negative correlations between cake volume and SRC parameters along with the cluster analysis results indicated that flours with smaller particle size, lower absorption capacity and higher pasting temperature had better cake-making performance. Some simple analyses, such as SRC, particle size distribution and pasting properties, may help to choose flours suitable for cake making. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

Technical Quality of Complete Dentures: Influence on Masticatory Efficiency and Quality of Life.

PubMed

Tôrres, Ana Clara Soares Paiva; Maciel, Amanda de Queiroz; de Farias, Danielle Bezerra; de Medeiros, Annie Karoline Bezerra; Vieira, Flávia Patrícia Tavares Veras; Carreiro, Adriana da Fonte Porto

2017-11-09

To evaluate the effect of the technical quality of conventional complete dentures (CD) on masticatory efficiency and quality of life (QoL) of denture wearers during a 1-year follow-up. A prospective clinical trial with 32 edentulous patients (mean age of 60.2 years) wearing mandibular and maxillary dentures was conducted. All patients were evaluated wearing their preexisting dentures and after 3, 6, and 12 months postinsertion of new dentures. A reproducible method for objective evaluation of the technical quality of CDs was employed. Masticatory efficiency was evaluated by the colorimetric method using beads as artificial testing food. The oral health impact on patient QoL was measured using the OHIP-EDENT (Oral Health Impact Profile in Edentulous Adults) questionnaire. The nonparametric Wilcoxon test was applied to reveal any differences in technical quality between the preexisting and new dentures. The Friedman test was used to detect differences in masticatory efficiency and oral health impact on QoL. Spearman's correlation was applied to reveal correlation between the variables. Comparing preexisting and new dentures, significant improvement was found in technical quality between the dentures (p < 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in masticatory efficiency. A significant decrease was found in the total OHIP-EDENT scores after denture replacement. A positive correlation was found between technical quality and OHIP in the new denture wearers (p = 0.011). According to the results of this study, denture quality significantly improved patients' oral health-related QoL; however, insertion of new dentures did not influence masticatory efficiency. © 2017 by the American College of Prosthodontists.

The Development of a Survey Instrument on South Dakota's School District Leadership Climate as Related to Deming's Fourteen Points.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holmes, Lawrence W. O.; And Others

Development of an instrument to measure baseline levels of applied Total Quality Management (TQM) practices in South Dakota before the introduction and dissemination of TQM theory to the state's educational leaders is described. Using the interpretation of Deming's 14 points that was developed by J. J. Bonstigl, a 115-item initial item pool was…

Rural Sociology in the South: 1980. Proceedings of the Rural Sociology Section of the Southern Association of Agricultural Scientists (Hot Springs, Arkansas, February 3-6, 1980).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frese, Wolfgang, Ed.

A total of 47 papers representing the broad research and extension interests related to rural areas are included in this volume. The 13 sessions are entitled Rural Structure and Process, Industrialization, Migration, Health and Alcohol, Quality of Life, Occupations and Work, Applied Sociology, Education, Network Analysis, Poverty, Status…

Physician strives to create lean, clean health care machine. Studies of manufacturing processes may one day help make your practice more efficient.

PubMed

Hill, D

2001-01-01

Elisabeth Hager, MD, MMM, CPE, is teaming up with scientists and industrialists to teach physicians how to apply principles of lean, total-quality manufacturing to their practices. She believes innovation and efficiencies can help doctors resurrect their profession's image and their control over it--and perhaps even reinvent American health care.

Role of Trace Elements for Oxidative Status and Quality of Human Sperm.

PubMed

Nenkova, Galina; Petrov, Lubomir; Alexandrova, Albena

2017-08-04

Oxidative stress affects sperm quality negatively. To maintain the pro/antioxidant balance, some metal ions (e.g. copper, zink, iron, selenium), which are co-factors of the antioxidant enzymes, are essential. However, iron and copper could act as prooxidants inducing oxidative damage of spermatozoa. To reveal a possible correlation between the concentrations of some metal ions (iron, copper, zinc, and selenium) in human seminal plasma, oxidative stress, assessed by malondialdehyde and total glutathione levels, and semen quality, assessed by the parameters count, motility, and morphology. Descriptive study. The semen analysis for volume, count, and motility was performed according to World Health Organization (2010) guidelines, using computer-assisted semen analysis. For the determination of spermatozoa morphology, a SpermBlue staining method was applied. Depending on their parameters, the sperm samples were categorized into normozoospermic, teratozoospermic, asthenoteratozoospermic, and oligoteratozoospermic. The seminal plasma content of iron, copper, zinc, and selenium was estimated by atomic absorption spectroscopy. The malondialdehyde and total glutathione levels were quantified spectrophotometrically. In the groups with poor sperm quality, the levels of Fe were higher, whereas those of Zn and Se were significantly lower than in the normozoospermic group. In all groups with poor sperm quality, increased levels of malondialdehyde and decreased glutathione levels were detected as evidence of oxidative stress occurrence. All these differences are most pronounced in the asthenoteratozoospermic group where values differ nearly twice as much compared to the normozoospermic group. The Fe concentration correlated positively with the malondialdehyde (r=0.666, p=0.018), whereas it showed a negative correlation with the level of total glutathione (r=-0.689, p=0.013). The total glutathione level correlated positively with the sperm motility (r=0.589, p=0.044). The elevated levels of Fe and the reduced Se levels are associated with sperm damage. The changes in the concentrations of the trace elements in human seminal plasma may be related to sperm quality since they are involved in the maintenance of the pro-/antioxidative balance in ejaculate.

Use of tolerance values to diagnose water-quality stressors to aquatic biota in New England streams

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meador, M.R.; Carlisle, D.M.; Coles, J.F.

2008-01-01

Identification of stressors related to biological impairment is critical to biological assessments. We applied nationally derived tolerance indicator values for four water-quality variables to fish and benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages at 29 sites along an urban gradient in New England. Tolerance indicator values (TIVs), as biologically based predictors of water-quality variables, were determined for dissolved oxygen, nitrite plus nitrate (nitrate), total phosphorus, and water temperature for each site based on observed biological assemblages (TIVO), and for expected assemblages (TIVE). The quotient method, based on a ratio of the TIVs for observed and expected assemblages (tolerance units), was used to diagnose potential water-quality stressors. In addition, the ratio of measured water-quality values to water-quality criteria (water-quality units) was calculated for each water-quality variable to assess measured water-quality stressors. Results from a RIVPACS predictive model for benthic macroinvertebrates and Bray-Curtis dissimilarity for fish were used to classify sites into categories of good or impaired ecological condition. Significant differences were detected between good and impaired sites for all biological tolerance units (fish and benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages averaged) except for nitrate (P = 0.480), and for all water-quality units except for nitrate (P = 0.183). Diagnosis of water-quality stressors at selected sites was, in general, consistent with State-reported causes of impairment. Tolerance units for benthic macroinvertebrate and fish assemblages were significantly correlated for water temperature (P = 0.001, r = 0.63), dissolved oxygen (P = 0.001, r = 0.61), and total phosphorus (P = 0.001, r = 0.61), but not for nitrate (P = 0.059, r = -0.35). Differences between the two assemblages in site-specific diagnosis of water-quality stressors may be the result of differences in nitrate tolerance.

Economic growth and the demand for dietary quality: Evidence from Russia during transition.

PubMed

Burggraf, Christine; Teuber, Ramona; Brosig, Stephan; Glauben, Thomas

2015-12-01

The increasing incidence of nutrition-related chronic diseases worldwide has raised people's awareness of dietary quality. Most existing studies on the topic of changing nutrition patterns measure dietary quality by single macronutrient indicators or anthropometric outcomes. However, such an approach is often too narrow to provide a picture of overall dietary quality and is sometimes even misleading. This study contributes to the existing literature by taking into account that the analysis of dietary quality comprises two dimensions: the adequate intake of vitamins and minerals, as well as the moderate intake of nutrients that increase the risk of chronic diseases. Thereby, we apply Grossman's health investment model to the analysis of the demand for dietary quality, explicitly addressing the different dimensions of dietary quality and the intertemporal character of health investments. We apply our approach to Russia using data from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey from 1996 to 2008. Our results show that intake levels of vitamins and minerals as well as saturated and total fatty acids increased after 1998 along with economic recovery, while the intake of fiber decreased. Our econometric results imply an income elasticity of vitamins and minerals of 0.051, and an income elasticity of fats of 0.073. Overall, our results are in line with an ongoing nutrition transition in the Russian Federation, which is marked by decreasing deficiencies in vitamins and minerals, as well as the increasing consumption of fats with its accompanying negative health consequences. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Risk assessment of water quality in three North Carolina, USA, streams supporting federally endangered freshwater mussels (Unionidae)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ward, S.; Augspurger, T.; Dwyer, F.J.; Kane, C.; Ingersoll, C.G.

2007-01-01

Water quality data were collected from three drainages supporting the endangered Carolina heelsplitter (Lasmigona decorata) and dwarf wedgemussel (Alasmidonta heterodon) to determine the potential for impaired water quality to limit the recovery of these freshwater mussels in North Carolina, USA. Total recoverable copper, total residual chlorine, and total ammonia nitrogen were measured every two months for approximately a year at sites bracketing wastewater sources and mussel habitat. These data and state monitoring datasets were compared with ecological screening values, including estimates of chemical concentrations likely to be protective of mussels, and federal ambient water quality criteria to assess site risks following a hazard quotient approach. In one drainage, the site-specific ammonia ecological screening value for acute exposures was exceeded in 6% of the samples, and 15% of samples exceeded the chronic ecological screening value; however, ammonia concentrations were generally below levels of concern in other drainages. In all drainages, copper concentrations were higher than ecological screening values most frequently (exceeding the ecological screening values for acute exposures in 65-94% of the samples). Chlorine concentrations exceeding the acute water quality criterion were observed in 14 and 35% of samples in two of three drainages. The ecological screening values were exceeded most frequently in Goose Creek and the Upper Tar River drainages; concentrations rarely exceeded ecological screening values in the Swift Creek drainage except for copper. The site-specific risk assessment approach provides valuable information (including site-specific risk estimates and ecological screening values for protection) that can be applied through regulatory and nonregulatory means to improve water quality for mussels where risks are indicated and pollutant threats persist. ?? 2007 SETAC.

Determination of the performance of vermicomposting process applied to sewage sludge by monitoring of the compost quality and immune responses in three earthworm species: Eisenia fetida, Eisenia andrei and Dendrobaena veneta.

PubMed

Suleiman, Hanine; Rorat, Agnieszka; Grobelak, Anna; Grosser, Anna; Milczarek, Marcin; Płytycz, Barbara; Kacprzak, Małgorzata; Vandenbulcke, Franck

2017-10-01

The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of vermicomposting process applied on three different sewage sludge (precomposted with grass clippings, sawdust and municipal solid wastes) using three different earthworm species. Selected immune parameters, namely biomarkers of stress and metal body burdens, have been used to biomonitor the vermicomposting process and to assess the impact of contaminants on earthworm's physiology. Biotic and abiotic parameters were also used in order to monitor the process and the quality of the final product. Dendrobaena veneta exhibited much lower resistance in all experimental conditions, as the bodyweight and the total number of circulating immune cells decreased in the most contaminated conditions. All earthworm species accumulated heavy metals as follows Cd>Co>Cu>Zn>Ni>Pb>Cr: Eisenia sp. worms exhibited the highest ability to accumulate several heavy metals. Vermicompost obtained after 45days was acceptable according to agronomic parameters and to compost quality norms in France and Poland. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Photoacoustic image reconstruction via deep learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antholzer, Stephan; Haltmeier, Markus; Nuster, Robert; Schwab, Johannes

2018-02-01

Applying standard algorithms to sparse data problems in photoacoustic tomography (PAT) yields low-quality images containing severe under-sampling artifacts. To some extent, these artifacts can be reduced by iterative image reconstruction algorithms which allow to include prior knowledge such as smoothness, total variation (TV) or sparsity constraints. These algorithms tend to be time consuming as the forward and adjoint problems have to be solved repeatedly. Further, iterative algorithms have additional drawbacks. For example, the reconstruction quality strongly depends on a-priori model assumptions about the objects to be recovered, which are often not strictly satisfied in practical applications. To overcome these issues, in this paper, we develop direct and efficient reconstruction algorithms based on deep learning. As opposed to iterative algorithms, we apply a convolutional neural network, whose parameters are trained before the reconstruction process based on a set of training data. For actual image reconstruction, a single evaluation of the trained network yields the desired result. Our presented numerical results (using two different network architectures) demonstrate that the proposed deep learning approach reconstructs images with a quality comparable to state of the art iterative reconstruction methods.

Composition and design of vegetative filter strips instrumental in improving water quality by mass reduction of suspended sediment, nutrients and Escherichia coli in overland flows in eastern escarpment of Mau Forest, Njoro River Watershed, Kenya

PubMed Central

Olilo, C. O.; Onyando, J. O.; Moturi, W. N.; Muia, A. W.; Roegner, Amber F.; Ogari, Z.; Ombui, P. N.; Shivoga, W. A.

2016-01-01

This study assessed the effect of vegetative filter strip (VFS) in removal of suspended sediment (SS), total nitrogen, total phosphorus and Escherichia coli (E. coli) in overland flow to improve receiving water quality standards. Four and half kilograms of cowpat manure was applied to the model pasture 14 m beyond the edge of vegetated filter strip (VFS) comprising 10-m Napier grass draining into 20-m Kikuyu grass (VFS II), 10-m Kikuyu grass draining into 20-m Napier grass (VFS III) and native grass mixture of Couch–Buffel (VFS I-control). Overland flow water samples were collected from the sites at positions 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 m along the length of VFSs. E. coli removal by Napier grass VFS was on the order of log unit, which provided an important level of protection and reduced surface-flow concentrations of E. coli to below the 200 (CFU 100 mL−1) recommended water quality standards, but not for nutrients and SS. The Napier grass showed highest efficiency (99.6 %), thus outperforming both Kikuyu grass (85.8 %) and Couch–Buffel grasses VFS (67.9 ± 4.2 %) in removing E. coli from overland flow. The low-level efficiency of native Couch–Buffel grasses in reducing E. coli in overland flow was because of preferential flow. Composition and design of VFS was instrumental and could be applied with a high potential of contracting the uncertainty in improving water quality standards through mass reduction of SS, nutrients and E. coli load in watersheds. PMID:28133624

Randomized clinical trials presented at the World Congress of Endourology: how is the quality of reporting?

PubMed

Autorino, Riccardo; Borges, Claudio; White, Michael A; Altunrende, Fatih; Perdoná, Sisto; Haber, Georges-Pascal; De Sio, Marco; Khanna, Rakesh; Stein, Robert J; Kaouk, Jihad H

2010-12-01

To assess the quality of reporting of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) presented in abstract form at the annual World Congress of Endourology (WCE) and evaluate their course of subsequent publication. All RCTs presented in abstract form at the 2004, 2005, and 2006 WCE annual meetings were identified for review. Quality of reporting was assessed by applying a standardized 14-item evaluation tool based on the Consolidated Standards for the Reporting of Trials (CONSORT) statement. The subsequent publication rate for the corresponding studies by scanning Medline was also evaluated. Appropriate statistical analysis was performed. A total of 94 RCTs (3.5% of 2669) were identified for review: 21 in 2004, 36 in 2005, and 37 in 2006. Overall, 45 (47.3% of the total) were subsequently published as a full length indexed manuscript with a mean time to publication of 16.4 ± 13.2 months. Approximately 61 (60%) identified the study design as RCT in the abstract title. None reported the method of randomization. In studies that reported blinding (seven, 11% of 62), five were double blinded and two single blinded. Adverse events were reported in 38% of cases. Only 10% of the abstracts complied fully with more than 10 items according to our CONSORT-based checklist, whereas the majority of them failed to comply with most of the CONSORT requirements. Although representing a small portion of the overall number of abstracts, there has been a steady increase of presentation of RCTs at the WCE over the assessed 3-year period. Most of the time they are recognized as RCTs in the abstract title. When applying the CONSORT criteria, necessary information to assess their methodologic quality is incomplete in some cases.

Water quality assessment of Australian ports using water quality evaluation indices

PubMed Central

Jahan, Sayka

2017-01-01

Australian ports serve diverse and extensive activities, such as shipping, tourism and fisheries, which may all impact the quality of port water. In this work water quality monitoring at different ports using a range of water quality evaluation indices was applied to assess the port water quality. Seawater samples at 30 stations in the year 2016–2017 from six ports in NSW, Australia, namely Port Jackson, Botany, Kembla, Newcastle, Yamba and Eden, were investigated to determine the physicochemical and biological variables that affect the port water quality. The large datasets obtained were designed to determine the Water Quality Index, Heavy metal Evaluation Index, Contamination Index and newly developed Environmental Water Quality Index. The study revealed medium water quality index and high and medium heavy metal evaluation index at three of the study ports and high contamination index in almost all study ports. Low level dissolved oxygen and higher level of total dissolved solids, turbidity, fecal coliforms, copper, iron, lead, zinc, manganese, cadmium and cobalt are mainly responsible for the poor water qualities of the port areas. Good water quality at the background samples indicated that various port activities are the likely cause for poor water quality inside the port area. PMID:29244876

Bio-implantable passive on-chip RF-MEMS strain sensing resonators for orthopaedic applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melik, Rohat; Kosku Perkgoz, Nihan; Unal, Emre; Puttlitz, Christian; Demir, Hilmi Volkan

2008-11-01

One out of ten bone fractures does not heal properly due to improper load distribution and strain profiles during the healing process. To provide implantable tools for the assessment of bone fractures, we have designed novel, bio-implantable, passive, on-chip, RF-MEMS strain sensors that rely on the resonance frequency shift with mechanical deformation. For this purpose, we modeled, fabricated and experimentally characterized two on-chip sensors with high quality factors for in vivo implantation. One of the sensors has an area of ~0.12 mm2 with a quality factor of ~60 and the other has an area of ~0.07 mm2 with a quality factor of ~70. To monitor the mechanical deformation by measuring the change in the resonance frequencies with the applied load, we employed a controllable, point load applying experimental setup designed and constructed for in vitro characterization. In the case of the sensor with the larger area, when we apply a load of 3920 N, we obtain a frequency shift of ~330 MHz and a quality factor of ~76. For the smaller sensor, the frequency shift and the quality factor are increased to 360 MHz and 95, respectively. These data demonstrate that our sensor chips have the capacity to withstand relatively high physiologic loads, and that the concomitant and very large resonant frequency shift with the applied load is achieved while maintaining a high signal quality factor. These experiments demonstrate that these novel sensors have the capacity for producing high sensitivity strain readout, even when the total device area is considerably small. Also, we have demonstrated that our bio-implantable, passive sensors deliver a telemetric, real-time readout of the strain on a chip. Placing two more resonators on the sides of the sensor to serve as transmitter and receiver antennas, we achieved to transfer contactless power and read out loads in the absence of direct wiring to the sensor. With this model, where telemetric measurements become simpler due to the fact that all sensor system is built on the same chip, we obtain a frequency shift of ~190 MHz with an increase in the quality factor from ~38 to ~46 when a load of 3920 N is applied. Therefore, as a first proof of concept, we have demonstrated the feasibility of our on-chip strain sensors for monitoring the mechanical deformation using telemetry-based systems.

The Quality of Patient Information Booklets for Cancer Patients-an Evaluation of Free Accessible Material in German Language.

PubMed

Keinki, Christian; Rudolph, Ivonne; Ruetters, Dana; Kuenzel, Ulrike; Lobitz, Jessica; Schaefer, Maike; Hanaya, Hani; Huebner, Jutta

2017-05-04

According to the information-seeking behaviors of patients, booklets which can be downloaded from the Internet for free are an important source of information notably for patients with cancer. This study investigated whether information booklets for patients with cancer available at German websites are in accordance with the formal and content criteria of evidence-based information. We compared and compiled both content and formal criteria by matching different national and international standards for written patient information using a merged instrument. A catalog with a total of 16 items within 4 categories (quality of the publication, quality of information, quality of information representation, and transparency) was created. Patient information booklets for the most frequent tumor types were collected from the Internet. A total of 52 different patient booklets were downloaded and assessed. Overall, no booklet fulfilled all criteria. The quality of the publications was evaluated with an average value of 1.67 while the quality of the information had a mean value of 1.45, and the quality of information presentation had a similar rating (1.39). The transparency criteria were evaluated as lowest with an average of 1.07. In summary, German booklets for cancer patients have some shortcomings concerning formal and content criteria for evidence-based patient information. The applied requirement catalog is suitable for wide use and may help in quality assurance of health information. It may be used as part of an obligatory external evaluation, which could help improving the quality of health information.

The effect of mining data k-means clustering toward students profile model drop out potential

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Purba, Windania; Tamba, Saut; Saragih, Jepronel

2018-04-01

The high of student success and the low of student failure can reflect the quality of a college. One of the factors of fail students was drop out. To solve the problem, so mining data with K-means Clustering was applied. K-Means Clustering method would be implemented to clustering the drop out students potentially. Firstly the the result data would be clustering to get the information of all students condition. Based on the model taken was found that students who potentially drop out because of the unexciting students in learning, unsupported parents, diffident students and less of students behavior time. The result of process of K-Means Clustering could known that students who more potentially drop out were in Cluster 1 caused Credit Total System, Quality Total, and the lowest Grade Point Average (GPA) compared between cluster 2 and 3.

Characterization of a new fertilizer during field trials by hyperspectral imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonifazi, Giuseppe; Serranti, Silvia; Trella, Agata; Garcia Izquierdo, Carlos

2016-05-01

This work was carried out in the framework of the LIFE RESAFE Project (LIFE12 ENV/IT/000356) "Innovative fertilizer from urban waste, bio-char and farm residues as substitute of chemical fertilizers". The aim of RESAFE project is the production of a new fertilizer from waste for agricultural practices. The new fertilizer was tested on 5 different crops during field trials carried out in Spain: barley, corn, tomato, potato and melon. For each crop six different treatments were applied and compared to verify the quality of RESAFE fertilizer. Soil samples were collected at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. The possibility to apply hyperspectral imaging (HSI) to perform soil evolution monitoring and characterization in respect to the fertilizer utilization and quality of the resulting crops was investigated. Soil samples were acquired by HSI in the near infrared field (1000-1700 nm) and on the same samples classical chemical analyses were carried out with reference to total nitrogen, total organic carbon, C/N ratio, total organic matter. Hyperspectral data were analyzed adopting a chemometric approach through application of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for exploratory purposes and Partial Least Squares Analysis (PLS) for estimation of chemical parameters. The results showed as the proposed hardware and software integrated architecture allows to implement low cost and easy to use analytical procedures able to quantitatively assess soil chemical-physical attributes according to different fertilization strategies, in respect of different environmental conditions and selected crops.

Spatial and temporal variation of water quality of a segment of Marikina River using multivariate statistical methods.

PubMed

Chounlamany, Vanseng; Tanchuling, Maria Antonia; Inoue, Takanobu

2017-09-01

Payatas landfill in Quezon City, Philippines, releases leachate to the Marikina River through a creek. Multivariate statistical techniques were applied to study temporal and spatial variations in water quality of a segment of the Marikina River. The data set included 12 physico-chemical parameters for five monitoring stations over a year. Cluster analysis grouped the monitoring stations into four clusters and identified January-May as dry season and June-September as wet season. Principal components analysis showed that three latent factors are responsible for the data set explaining 83% of its total variance. The chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand, total dissolved solids, Cl - and PO 4 3- are influenced by anthropogenic impact/eutrophication pollution from point sources. Total suspended solids, turbidity and SO 4 2- are influenced by rain and soil erosion. The highest state of pollution is at the Payatas creek outfall from March to May, whereas at downstream stations it is in May. The current study indicates that the river monitoring requires only four stations, nine water quality parameters and testing over three specific months of the year. The findings of this study imply that Payatas landfill requires a proper leachate collection and treatment system to reduce its impact on the Marikina River.

Scattering images from autocorrelation functions of P-wave seismic velocity images: the case of Tenerife Island (Canary Islands, Spain)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

García-Yeguas, A.; Sánchez-Alzola, A.; De Siena, L.; Prudencio, J.; Díaz-Moreno, A.; Ibáñez, J. M.

2018-03-01

We present a P-wave scattering image of the volcanic structures under Tenerife Island using the autocorrelation functions of P-wave vertical velocity fluctuations. We have applied a cluster analysis to total quality factor attenuation ( {Q}_t^{-1} ) and scattering quality factor attenuation ( {Q}_{PSc}^{-1} ) images to interpret the structures in terms of intrinsic and scattering attenuation variations on a 2D plane, corresponding to a depth of 2000 m, and check the robustness of the scattering imaging. The results show that scattering patterns are similar to total attenuation patterns in the south of the island. There are two main areas where patterns differ: at Cañadas-Teide-Pico Viejo Complex, high total attenuation and average-to-low scattering values are observed. We interpret the difference as induced by intrinsic attenuation. In the Santiago Ridge Zone (SRZ) region, high scattering values correspond to average total attenuation. In our interpretation, the anomaly is induced by an extended scatterer, geometrically related to the surficial traces of Garachico and El Chinyero historical eruptions and the area of highest seismic activity during the 2004-2008 seismic crises.

Chemical application strategies to protect water quality.

PubMed

Rice, Pamela J; Horgan, Brian P; Barber, Brian L; Koskinen, William C

2018-07-30

Management of turfgrass on golf courses and athletic fields often involves application of plant protection products to maintain or enhance turfgrass health and performance. However, the transport of fertilizer and pesticides with runoff to adjacent surface waters can enhance algal blooms, promote eutrophication and may have negative impacts on sensitive aquatic organisms and ecosystems. Thus, we evaluated the effectiveness of chemical application setbacks to reduce the off-site transport of chemicals with storm runoff. Experiments with water soluble tracer compounds confirmed an increase in application setback distance resulted in a significant increase in the volume of runoff measured before first off-site chemical detection, as well as a significant reduction in the total percentage of applied chemical transported with the storm runoff. For example, implementation of a 6.1 m application setback reduced the total percentage of an applied water soluble tracer by 43%, from 18.5% of applied to 10.5% of applied. Evaluation of chemographs revealed the efficacy of application setbacks could be observed with storms resulting in lesser (e.g. 100 L) and greater (e.g. > 300 L) quantities of runoff. Application setbacks offer turfgrass managers a mitigation approach that requires no additional resources or time inputs and may serve as an alternative practice when buffers are less appropriate for land management objectives or site conditions. Characterizing potential contamination of surface waters and developing strategies to safeguard water quality will help protect the environment and improve water resource security. This information is useful to grounds superintendents for designing chemical application strategies to maximize environmental stewardship. The data will also be useful to scientists and regulators working with chemical transport and risk models. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Calibrations between the variables of microbial TTI response and ground pork qualities.

PubMed

Kim, Eunji; Choi, Dong Yeol; Kim, Hyun Chul; Kim, Keehyuk; Lee, Seung Ju

2013-10-01

A time-temperature indicator (TTI) based on a lactic acid bacterium, Weissella cibaria CIFP009, was applied to ground pork packaging. Calibration curves between TTI response and pork qualities were obtained from storage tests at 2°C, 10°C, and 13°C. The curves of the TTI vs. total cell number at different temperatures coincided to the greatest extent, indicating the highest representativeness of calibration, by showing the least coefficient of variance (CV=11%) of the quality variables at a given TTI response (titratable acidity) on the curves, followed by pH (23%), volatile basic nitrogen (VBN) (25%), and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) (47%). Similarity of Arrhenius activation energy (Ea) could also reflect the representativeness of calibration. The total cell number (104.9 kJ/mol) was found to be the most similar to that of the TTI response (106.2 kJ/mol), followed by pH (113.6 kJ/mol), VBN (77.4 kJ/mol), and TBARS (55.0 kJ/mol). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Assessing the impacts of land use on downstream water quality using a hydrologically sensitive area concept.

PubMed

Giri, Subhasis; Qiu, Zeyuan; Zhang, Zhen

2018-05-01

Understanding the relationship between land use and water quality is essential to improve water quality through carefully managing landscape change. This study applies a linear mixed model at both watershed and hydrologically sensitive areas (HSAs) scales to assess such a relationship in 28 northcentral New Jersey watersheds located in a rapidly urbanizing region in the United States. Two models differ in terms of the geographic scope used to derive land use matrices that quantify land use conditions. The land use matrices at the watershed and HSAs scales represent the land use conditions in these watersheds and their HSAs, respectively. HSAs are the hydrological "hotspots" in a watershed that are prone to runoff generation during storm events. HSAs are derived using a soil topographic index (STI) that predicts hydrological sensitivity of a landscape based on a variable source area hydrology concept. The water quality indicators in these models are total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations in streams observed at the watershed outlets. The modeling results suggest that presence of low density urban land, agricultural land and wetlands elevate while forest decreases TN, TP and/or TSS concentrations in streams. The watershed scale model tends to emphasize the role of agricultural lands in water quality degradation while the HSA scale model highlights the role of forest in water quality improvement. This study supports the hypothesis that even though HSAs are relatively smaller area compared to watershed, still the land uses within HSAs have similar impacts on downstream water quality as the land uses in entire watersheds, since both models have negligible differences in model evaluation parameters. Inclusion of HSAs brings an interesting perspective to understand the dynamic relationships between land use and water quality. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Study of Material Used in Nanotechnology for the Recycling of Industrial Waste Water

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larbi, L.; Fertikh, N.; Toubal, A.

The objective of our study is to recycle the industrial waste water of a industrial Complex after treatment by the bioprocess MBR (membrane bioreactor). In order to apply this bioprocess, the water quality in question was first of all studied. To characterize this industrial waste water, a series of physicochemical analysis was carried out according to standardized directives and methods. Following-up the water quality to meet the regulatory requirements with rejection of this industrial waste water, a study was done thanks to the permanently monitoring of the following relevant parameters(P): the flow, the potential of hydrogen (pH), the total suspended solids(TSS), the turbidity (Turb), the chemical oxygen demand (COD),the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), the Kjeldahl total nitrogen (KTN) and ammonia (NH4+), the total phosphorus (Ptot), the fluorine (F), the oils (O), the fats (F) and the phenols (Ph). According to collected information, it was established the sampling rates to which the quality control was done, the selected analytical methods were validated by the control charts and the analysis test number was determined by the Cochran test. The results of the quality control show that some rejected water contents are not in the Algerian standards, but, in our case, the objective is the preoccupation for a standard setting of these industrial water parameters so as to recycle it. The process adopted by MBR for waste water treatment is being studied, first in the development of the experimental characterizing of the reactor and the selected membrane.

Applying total quality management concepts to public health organizations.

PubMed Central

Kaluzny, A D; McLaughlin, C P; Simpson, K

1992-01-01

Total quality management (TQM) is a participative, systematic approach to planning and implementing a continuous organizational improvement process. Its approach is focused on satisfying customers' expectations, identifying problems, building commitment, and promoting open decision-making among workers. TQM applies analytical tools, such as flow and statistical charts and check sheets, to gather data about activities within an organization. TQM uses process techniques, such as nominal groups, brainstorming, and consensus forming to facilitate communication and decision making. TQM applications in the public sector and particularly in public health agencies have been limited. The process of integrating TQM into public health agencies complements and enhances the Model Standards Program and assessment methodologies, such as the Assessment Protocol for Excellence in Public Health (APEX-PH), which are mechanisms for establishing strategic directions for public health. The authors examine the potential for using TQM as a method to achieve and exceed standards quickly and efficiently. They discuss the relationship of performance standards and assessment methodologies with TQM and provide guidelines for achieving the full potential of TQM in public health organizations. The guidelines include redefining the role of management, defining a common corporate culture, refining the role of citizen oversight functions, and setting realistic estimates of the time needed to complete a task or project. PMID:1594734

Critical concepts and important anatomic landmarks encountered during transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME): toward the mastery of a new operation for rectal cancer surgery.

PubMed

Atallah, S; Albert, M; Monson, J R T

2016-07-01

Over the past 3 years, colorectal surgeons have begun to adapt the technique of transanal total mesorectal excision. As international experience has been quickly forged, an improved recognition of the pitfalls and the practical details of this disruptive technique have been realized. The purpose of this technical note was to express the various nuances of transanal total mesorectal excision as learned during the course of its clinical application and international teaching, so as to rapidly communicate and share important insights with other surgeons who are in the early adoption phase of this approach. The technical points specific to transanal total mesorectal excision are addressed herein. When correctly applied, these will likely improve the quality of surgery and decrease morbidity attributable to inexperience with the transanal approach to total mesorectal excision.

Quality assessment of plant transpiration water

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macler, Bruce A.; Janik, Daniel S.; Benson, Brian L.

1990-01-01

It has been proposed to use plants as elements of biologically-based life support systems for long-term space missions. Three roles have been brought forth for plants in this application: recycling of water, regeneration of air and production of food. This report discusses recycling of water and presents data from investigations of plant transpiration water quality. Aqueous nutrient solution was applied to several plant species and transpired water collected. The findings indicated that this water typically contained 0.3-6 ppm of total organic carbon, which meets hygiene water standards for NASA's space applications. It suggests that this method could be developed to achieve potable water standards.

Estimation of contribution ratios of pollutant sources to a specific section based on an enhanced water quality model.

PubMed

Cao, Bibo; Li, Chuan; Liu, Yan; Zhao, Yue; Sha, Jian; Wang, Yuqiu

2015-05-01

Because water quality monitoring sections or sites could reflect the water quality status of rivers, surface water quality management based on water quality monitoring sections or sites would be effective. For the purpose of improving water quality of rivers, quantifying the contribution ratios of pollutant resources to a specific section is necessary. Because physical and chemical processes of nutrient pollutants are complex in water bodies, it is difficult to quantitatively compute the contribution ratios. However, water quality models have proved to be effective tools to estimate surface water quality. In this project, an enhanced QUAL2Kw model with an added module was applied to the Xin'anjiang Watershed, to obtain water quality information along the river and to assess the contribution ratios of each pollutant source to a certain section (the Jiekou state-controlled section). Model validation indicated that the results were reliable. Then, contribution ratios were analyzed through the added module. Results show that among the pollutant sources, the Lianjiang tributary contributes the largest part of total nitrogen (50.43%), total phosphorus (45.60%), ammonia nitrogen (32.90%), nitrate (nitrite + nitrate) nitrogen (47.73%), and organic nitrogen (37.87%). Furthermore, contribution ratios in different reaches varied along the river. Compared with pollutant loads ratios of different sources in the watershed, an analysis of contribution ratios of pollutant sources for each specific section, which takes the localized chemical and physical processes into consideration, was more suitable for local-regional water quality management. In summary, this method of analyzing the contribution ratios of pollutant sources to a specific section based on the QUAL2Kw model was found to support the improvement of the local environment.

Evaluation of Shiraz wastewater treatment plant effluent quality for agricultural irrigation by Canadian Water Quality Index (CWQI)

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Using treated wastewater in agriculture irrigation could be a realistic solution for the shortage of fresh water in Iran, however, it is associated with environmental and health threats; therefore, effluent quality assessment is quite necessary before use. The present study aimed to evaluate the physicochemical and microbial quality of Shiraz wastewater treatment plant effluent for being used in agricultural irrigation. In this study, 20 physicochemical and 3 microbial parameters were measured during warm (April to September) and cold months (October to march). Using the measured parameters and the Canadian Water Quality Index, the quality of the effluent was determined in both warm and cold seasons and in all the seasons together. Results The calculated index for the physicochemical parameters in the effluent was equal (87) in warm and cold months and it was obtained as 85 for the seasons all together. When the microbial parameters were used in order to calculate the index, it declined to 67 in warm and cold seasons and 64 in all the seasons together. Also, it was found that three physicochemical parameters (TDS, EC, and NO3) and three microbial parameters (Fecal coliform, Helminthes egg, and Total coliform) had the most contribution to the reduction of the index value. Conclusions The results showed that the physicochemical quality of Shiraz Wastewater Treatment Plant Effluent was good for irrigation in the warm, cold, and total of the two kinds of seasons. However, by applying the microbial parameter, the index value declined dramatically and the quality of the effluent was marginal. PMID:23566673

Oral health-related quality of life following third molar surgery with or without application of ice pack therapy.

PubMed

Ibikunle, Adebayo A; Adeyemo, Wasiu L

2016-09-01

To evaluate the effect of ice pack therapy on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) following third molar surgery. All consecutive subjects who required surgical extraction of lower third molars and satisfied the inclusion criteria were randomly allocated into two groups. Subjects in group A were instructed to apply ice packs directly over the masseteric region on the operated side intermittently after third molar surgery. This first application was supervised in the clinic and was repeated at the 24-h postoperative review. Subjects in group A were further instructed to apply the ice pack when at home every one and a half hours on postoperative days 0 and 1 while he/she was awake as described. Group B subjects did not apply ice pack therapy. Facial swelling, pain, trismus, and quality of life (using Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) instrument) were evaluated both preoperatively and postoperatively. Postoperative scores in both groups were compared. A significant increase in the mean total and subscale scores of OHIP-14 was found in both groups postoperatively when compared with preoperative value. Subjects who received ice pack therapy had a better quality of life than those who did not. Subjects whose postoperative QoL were affected were statistically significantly higher in group B than in group A at all postoperative evaluation points (P < 0.05). Statistically significant differences were also observed between the groups in the various subscales analyzed, with better quality of life seen among subjects in group A. Quality of life after third molar surgery was significantly better in subjects who had cryotherapy after third molar than those who did not have cryotherapy. Cryotherapy is a viable alternative or adjunct to other established modes of improving the quality of life of patients following surgical extraction of third molars.

Nutrient additions by waterfowl to lakes and reservoirs: predicting their effects on productivity and water quality

USGS Publications Warehouse

Manny, Bruce A.; Johnson, W.C.; Wetzel, R.G.

1994-01-01

Lakes and reservoirs provide water for human needs and habitat for aquatic birds. Managers of such waters may ask whether nutrients added by waterfowl degrade water quality. For lakes and reservoirs where primary productivity is limited by phosphorus (P), we developed a procedure that integrates annual P loads from waterfowl and other external sources, applies a nutrient load-response model, and determines whether waterfowl that used the lake or reservoir degraded water quality. Annual P loading by waterfowl can be derived from a figure in this report, using the days per year that each kind spent on any lake or reservoir. In our example, over 6500 Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and 4200 ducks (mostly mallards, Anas platyrhynchos) added 4462 kg of carbon (C), 280 kg of nitrogen (N), and 88 kg of P y-1 to Wintergreen Lake in southwestern Michigan, mostly during their migration. These amounts were 69% of all C, 27% of all N, and 70% of all P that entered the lake from external sources. Loads from all external sources totaled 840 mg P m-2 y-1. Application of a nutrient load-response model to this concentration, the hydraulic load (0.25 m y-1), and the water residence time (9.7 y) of Wintergreen Lake yielded an average annual concentration of total P in the lake of 818 mg m-3 that classified the lake as hypertrophic. This trophic classification agreed with independent measures of primary productivity, chlorophyll-a, total P, total N, and Secchi disk transparency made in Wintergreen Lake. Our procedure showed that waterfowl caused low water quality in Wintergreen Lake.

Evaluating signal and noise spectral density of a qPlus sensor with an active feedback control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Manhee; An, Sangmin; Jhe, Wonho

2018-05-01

Q-control technique enables to actively change the quality factor of the probe oscillation in dynamic atomic force microscopy. The Q-control is realized by adding a self-feedback loop into the original actuation-detection system, in which a damping force with controllable damping coefficient in magnitude and sign is applied to the oscillating probe. While the applied force alters the total damping interaction and thus the overall `signal' of the probe motion, the added feedback system changes the `noise' of the motion as well. Here, we systematically investigate the signal, the noise, and the signal-to-noise ratio of the qPlus sensor under the active Q-control. We quantify the noise of the qPlus motion by measuring the noise spectral density, which is reproduced by a harmonic oscillator model including the thermal and the measurement noises. We show that the noise signal increases with the quality factor controlled, scaling as the square root of the quality factor. Because the overall signal is linearly proportional to the quality factor, the signal-to-noise ratio scales as the square root of the quality factor. The Q-controlled qPlus with a highly enhanced Q, up to 10,000 in air, leads to the minimum detectable force gradient of 0.001 N/m, which would enhance the capability of the qPlus sensor for atomic force microscopy and spectroscopy.

Effect of ethanol treatment on physiological and quality attributes of fresh-cut eggplant.

PubMed

Hu, Wenzhong; Jiang, Aili; Tian, Mixia; Liu, Chenghui; Wang, Yanying

2010-06-01

Fresh-cut eggplants, as other vegetables, have relatively short shelf life because of the large amount of tissue disruption and increased metabolism. There is a very rapid onset of enzymatic browning and tissue softening with consequent decrease in sensorial and nutritional quality. To reduce respiration and maintain the quality, various treatments have been applied to find the optimum conditions that provide more fresh and natural fresh-cut produce after minimal processing. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of ethanol vapour treatment on physiological and quality attributes of fresh-cut eggplant during the extension of shelf life. The fresh-cut eggplant treated with ethanol vapour showed that respiration rate and occurrence of enzymatic browning were reduced, and higher total phenol content was maintained during 8 days of storage at 10 degrees C. The polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase in fresh-cut eggplant were also inhibited significantly by ethanol treatment. The ethanol treatment reduced the weight loss and maintained the integrity of cell membranes, as confirmed by the low value of electrolyte leakage. The ethanol treatment applied for fresh-cut eggplant was a practical approach to reduce the activity of physiological metabolism and maintain the fresh quality of fresh-cut eggplant. The experimental results revealed that ethanol treatment was effective for extending the shelf life of fresh-cut eggplant as a cheap, environmentally acceptable method. Copyright (c) 2010 Society of Chemical Industry.

[Analysis of effect of topographical conditions on content of total alkaloid in Coptidis Rhizoma in Chongqin, China].

PubMed

Liu, Xin; Huang, He; Yang, Yan-fang; Wu, He-zhen

2014-12-01

To study ecology suitability rank dividing of the total alkaloid content of Coptis Rhizoma for selecting artificial planting base and high-quality industrial raw material in Chongqing province. Based on the investigation of PCB and DEM data of Chongqing province, the relationship between the total alkaloid content in Coptis Rhizoma and topographical conditions was analyzed by statistical analysis. The geographic information systems (GIS)-based assessment and landscape ecological principles were applied to assess eco logy suitability areas of Coptis Rhizoma in Chongqing. slope, aspect and altitude are main topographical factors that affect the content of the total alkaloid content in Coptis Rhizoma The total alkaloid content in Coptis Rhizoma is higher in the lower altitude, shady slope and bigger slope areas. The total alkaloid content is higher in the south areas of Chongqing province and lower in the northeast. Terrain conditions of the southern region of Chongqing are most suitable for The accumulated of total alkaloid Coptis Rhizoma content.

Investigation of the conditions affecting the joining of Hungarian hospitals to an accreditation programme: a cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

Margitai, Barnabás; Dózsa, Csaba; Bárdos-Csenteri, Orsolya Karola; Sándor, János; Gáll, Tibor; Gődény, Sándor

2018-01-01

Objective Quantitative studies have shown the various benefits for having accreditation in hospitals. However, neither of these explored the general conditions before applying for an accreditation. To close this gap, this study aimed to investigate the possible association between joining an accreditation programme with various hospital characteristics. Design A cross-sectional study was implemented using the databases of the 2013 Hungarian hospital survey and of the Hungarian State Treasury. Setting Public general hospitals in Hungary. Participants The analysis involved 44 public general hospitals, 14 of which joined the preparatory project for a newly developed accreditation programme. Main outcome measures The outcomes included the percentage of compliance in quality management, patient information and identification, internal professional regulation, safe surgery, pressure sore prevention, infection control, the opinions of the heads of quality management regarding the usefulness of quality management and clinical audits, and finally, the total debt of the hospital per bed and per discharged patient. Results According to our findings, the general hospitals joining the preparatory project of the accreditation programme performed better in four of the six investigated activities, the head of quality management had a better opinion on the usefulness of quality management, and both the debt per bed number and the debt per discharged patient were lower than those who did not join. However, no statistically significant differences between the two groups were found in any of the examined outcomes. Conclusions The findings suggest that hospitals applying for an accreditation programme do not differ significantly in characteristics from those which did not apply. This means that if in the future the accredited hospitals become better than other hospitals, then the improvement could be solely contributed to the accreditation. PMID:29391381

Using an innovative combination of quality-by-design and green analytical chemistry approaches for the development of a stability indicating UHPLC method in pharmaceutical products.

PubMed

Boussès, Christine; Ferey, Ludivine; Vedrines, Elodie; Gaudin, Karen

2015-11-10

An innovative combination of green chemistry and quality by design (QbD) approach is presented through the development of an UHPLC method for the analysis of the main degradation products of dextromethorphan hydrobromide. QbD strategy was integrated to the field of green analytical chemistry to improve method understanding while assuring quality and minimizing environmental impacts, and analyst exposure. This analytical method was thoroughly evaluated by applying risk assessment and multivariate analysis tools. After a scouting phase aimed at selecting a suitable stationary phase and an organic solvent in accordance with green chemistry principles, quality risk assessment tools were applied to determine the critical process parameters (CPPs). The effects of the CPPs on critical quality attributes (CQAs), i.e., resolutions, efficiencies, and solvent consumption were further evaluated by means of a screening design. A response surface methodology was then carried out to model CQAs as function of the selected CPPs and the optimal separation conditions were determined through a desirability analysis. Resulting contour plots enabled to establish the design space (DS) (method operable design region) where all CQAs fulfilled the requirements. An experimental validation of the DS proved that quality within the DS was guaranteed; therefore no more robustness study was required before the validation. Finally, this UHPLC method was validated using the concept of total error and was used to analyze a pharmaceutical drug product. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development and implementation of an audit tool for quality control of parenteral nutrition.

PubMed

García-Rodicio, Sonsoles; Abajo, Celia; Godoy, Mercedes; Catalá, Miguel Angel

2009-01-01

The aim of this article is to describe the development of a quality control methodology applied to patients receiving parenteral nutrition (PN) and to present the results obtained over the past 10 years. Development of the audit tool: In 1995, a total of 13 PN quality criteria and their standards were defined based on literature and past experiences. They were applied during 5 different 6-month audits carried out in subsequent years. According to the results of each audit, the criteria with lower validity were eliminated, while others were optimized and new criteria were introduced to complete the monitoring of other areas not previously examined. Currently, the quality control process includes 22 quality criteria and their standards that examine the following 4 different areas: (1) indication and duration of PN; (2) nutrition assessment, adequacy of the nutrition support, and monitoring; (3) metabolic and infectious complications; and (4) global efficacy of the nutrition support regimen. The authors describe the current definition of each criterion and present the results obtained in the 5 audits performed. In the past year, 9 of the 22 criteria reached the predefined standards. The areas detected for further improvements were: indication for PN, nutrition assessment, and management of catheter infections. The definition of quality criteria and their standards is an efficient method of providing a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the clinical care of patients receiving PN. It detects areas for improvement and assists in developing a methodology to work efficiently.

Reinvention/reengineering of business and technical processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olsen, Eugene A.

1996-01-01

The changing marketplace as evidenced by global competition is requiring American organizations to rethink, regroup, and redesign their processes. The umbrella of total quality management (TQM) includes many quality methods, techniques, tools, and approaches. There is no right way for every situation or circumstance. Adaptability and experimentation of several tools is necessary. Process management when properly applied can lead to continuous quality improvements. But some processes simply need to be discarded and new ones developed. This reengineering often results in vertical compression and job redesign and restructuring. Work activities must be designed around processes, not processes around work activities. Reengineering and process management do not stand alone--they support each other. Senior executive leadership and empowerment of workers at all organizational levels is vital for both short-term and long-term success.

Ride quality criteria and the design process. [standards for ride comfort

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ravera, R. J.

1975-01-01

Conceptual designs for advanced ground transportation systems often hinge on obtaining acceptable vehicle ride quality while attempting to keep the total guideway cost (initial and subsequent maintenance) as low as possible. Two ride quality standards used extensively in work sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) are the DOT-Urban Tracked Air Cushion Vehicle (UTACV) standard and the International Standards Organization (ISO) reduced ride comfort criteria. These standards are reviewed and some of the deficiencies, which become apparent when trying to apply them in practice, are noted. Through the use of a digital simulation, the impact of each of these standards on an example design process is examined. It is shown that meeting the ISO specification for the particular vehicle/guideway case investigated is easier than meeting the UTACV standard.

Controlling for quality in the hospital cost function.

PubMed

Carey, Kathleen; Stefos, Theodore

2011-06-01

This paper explores the relationship between the cost and quality of hospital care from the perspective of applied microeconomics. It addresses both theoretical and practical complexities entailed in incorporating hospital quality into the estimation of hospital cost functions. That literature is extended with an empirical analysis that examines the use of 15 Patient Safety Indicators (PSIs) as measures of hospital quality. A total operating cost function is estimated on 2,848 observations from five states drawn from the period 2001 to 2007. In general, findings indicate that the PSIs are successful in capturing variation in hospital cost due to adverse patient safety events. Measures that rely on the aggregate number of adverse events summed over PSIs are found to be superior to risk-adjusted rates for individual PSIs. The marginal cost of an adverse event is estimated to be $22,413. The results contribute to a growing business case for inpatient safety in hospital services.

Benchmark matrix and guide: Part III.

PubMed

1992-01-01

The final article in the "Benchmark Matrix and Guide" series developed by Headquarters Air Force Logistics Command completes the discussion of the last three categories that are essential ingredients of a successful total quality management (TQM) program. Detailed behavioral objectives are listed in the areas of recognition, process improvement, and customer focus. These vertical categories are meant to be applied to the levels of the matrix that define the progressive stages of the TQM: business as usual, initiation, implementation, expansion, and integration. By charting the horizontal progress level and the vertical TQM category, the quality management professional can evaluate the current state of TQM in any given organization. As each category is completed, new goals can be defined in order to advance to a higher level. The benchmarking process is integral to quality improvement efforts because it focuses on the highest possible standards to evaluate quality programs.

Motivating medical information system performance by system quality, service quality, and job satisfaction for evidence-based practice.

PubMed

Chang, Ching-Sheng; Chen, Su-Yueh; Lan, Yi-Ting

2012-11-21

No previous studies have addressed the integrated relationships among system quality, service quality, job satisfaction, and system performance; this study attempts to bridge such a gap with evidence-based practice study. The convenience sampling method was applied to the information system users of three hospitals in southern Taiwan. A total of 500 copies of questionnaires were distributed, and 283 returned copies were valid, suggesting a valid response rate of 56.6%. SPSS 17.0 and AMOS 17.0 (structural equation modeling) statistical software packages were used for data analysis and processing. The findings are as follows: System quality has a positive influence on service quality (γ11= 0.55), job satisfaction (γ21= 0.32), and system performance (γ31= 0.47). Service quality (β31= 0.38) and job satisfaction (β32= 0.46) will positively influence system performance. It is thus recommended that the information office of hospitals and developers take enhancement of service quality and user satisfaction into consideration in addition to placing b on system quality and information quality when designing, developing, or purchasing an information system, in order to improve benefits and gain more achievements generated by hospital information systems.

Nutritional quality of foods and non-alcoholic beverages advertised on Mexican television according to three nutrient profile models.

PubMed

Rincón-Gallardo Patiño, Sofía; Tolentino-Mayo, Lizbeth; Flores Monterrubio, Eric Alejandro; Harris, Jennifer L; Vandevijvere, Stefanie; Rivera, Juan A; Barquera, Simón

2016-08-05

Evidence supports that television food advertisements influence children's food preferences and their consumption. However, few studies have examined the extent and nature of food marketing to children in low and middle income countries. This study aims to assess the nutritional quality of foods and beverages advertised on Mexican TV, applying the Mexican, World Health Organization (WHO) European and United Kingdom (UKNPM) nutrient profile models, before the Mexican regulation on food marketing came into effect. We recorded 600 h on the four national public and free TV channels with the highest national ratings, from December 2012 to April 2013. Recordings were done for 40 randomly selected (week, weekend, school and vacation) days, from 7 am to 10 pm. Nutritional information per 100 g/ml of product was obtained from the product labels or company websites. A total of 2,544 food and non-alcoholic beverage advertisements were broadcast, for 275 different products. On average, the foods advertised during cartoon programming had the highest energy (367 kcal) and sugar (30.0 g) content, while foods advertised during sport programming had the highest amount of total fat (9.5 g) and sodium (412 mg) content. More than 60 % of the foods advertised did not meet any nutritional quality standards. 64.3 % of the products did not comply with the Mexican nutritional standards, as compared with 83.1 % and 78.7 % with WHO Europe and UKNPM standards, respectively. The food groups most frequently advertised were beverages (24.6 %), followed by chocolate and confectionery sugar (19.7 %), cakes, sweet biscuits and pastries (12.0 %), savory snacks (9.3 %), breakfast cereals (7.1 %), ready-made food (6.4 %) and dairy products (6.0 %). The majority of foods and beverages advertised on Mexican TV do not comply with any nutritional quality standards, and thus should not be marketed to children. The nutritional quality standards applied by the Mexican regulation are much weaker than those applied by the WHO Europe and United Kingdom. The Mexican government should improve the nutrition standards in its new regulation, especially the sugar cut off points.

Acute Antipsychotic Treatment of Children and Adolescents With Schizophrenia-Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Pagsberg, Anne Katrine; Tarp, Simon; Glintborg, Dorte; Stenstrøm, Anne Dorte; Fink-Jensen, Anders; Correll, Christoph Ulrich; Christensen, Robin

2017-03-01

To determine the comparative efficacy and safety of antipsychotics for youth with early-onset schizophrenia using network meta-analytic methods combining direct and indirect trial data. The authors systematically searched MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and clinicaltrials.gov and selected randomized controlled trials allocating youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders to a (non-clozapine) antipsychotic versus placebo or another antipsychotic. Major efficacy outcomes were Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total and positive symptoms. Major safety outcomes were weight, plasma triglyceride levels, extrapyramidal symptoms, akathisia, and all-cause discontinuation. Sixteen additional outcomes were analyzed. A random-effects arm-based network meta-analysis was applied, and consistency was assessed by pairwise meta-analysis. Confidence in PANSS total estimates was assessed by applying the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Twelve 6- to 12-week trials (N = 2,158; 8-19 years old; 61% boys) involving 8 antipsychotics (aripiprazole, asenapine, paliperidone, risperidone, quetiapine, olanzapine, molindone, and ziprasidone) were analyzed. PANSS total symptom change was comparable among antipsychotics (low- to moderate-quality evidence), except ziprasidone (very low- to low-quality evidence), and all antipsychotics were superior to placebo (low- to high-quality evidence), except ziprasidone and asenapine (low- to moderate-quality evidence). PANSS positive changes and additional efficacy outcomes were comparable among antipsychotics. Weight gain was primarily associated with olanzapine; extrapyramidal symptoms and akathisia were associated with molindone; and prolactin increased with risperidone, paliperidone, and olanzapine. Serious adverse events, discontinuation of treatment, sedation, insomnia, or change in triglycerides did not differ among antipsychotics. This network meta-analysis showed comparable efficacy among antipsychotics for early-onset schizophrenia, except that efficacy appeared inferior for ziprasidone and unclear for asenapine. Adverse reaction profiles varied substantially among the investigated antipsychotics and were largely consistent with prior findings in adults. Protocol registration information-Antipsychotic Treatment for Children With Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders: Network Meta-Analysis of Randomised Trials; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/; CRD42013006676. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Earthworms and litter management contributions to ecosystem services in a tropical agroforestry system.

PubMed

Fonte, Steven J; Six, Johan

2010-06-01

The development of sustainable agricultural systems depends in part upon improved management of non-crop species to enhance the overall functioning and provision of services by agroecosystems. To address this need, our research examined the role of earthworms and litter management on nutrient dynamics, soil organic matter (SOM) stabilization, and crop growth in the Quesungual agroforestry system of western Honduras. Field mesocosms were established with two earthworm treatments (0 vs. 8 Pontoscolex corethrurus individuals per mesocosm) and four litter quality treatments: (1) low-quality Zea mays, (2) high-quality Diphysa robinioides, (3) a mixture of low- and high-quality litters, and (4) a control with no organic residues applied. Mesocosms included a single Z. mays plant and additions of 15N-labeled inorganic nitrogen. At maize harvest, surface soils (0-15 cm) in the mesocosms were sampled to determine total and available P as well as the distribution of C, N, and 15N among different aggregate-associated SOM pools. Maize plants were divided into grain and non-grain components and analyzed for total P, N, and 15N. Earthworm additions improved soil structure as demonstrated by a 10% increase in mean weight diameter and higher C and N storage within large macro-aggregates (>2000 microm). A corresponding 17% increase in C contained in micro-aggregates within the macro-aggregates indicates that earthworms enhance the stabilization of SOM in these soils; however, this effect only occurred when organic residues were applied. Earthworms also decreased available P and total soil P, indicating that earthworms may facilitate the loss of labile P added to this system. Earthworms decreased the recovery of fertilizer-derived N in the soil but increased the uptake of 15N by maize by 7%. Litter treatments yielded minimal effects on soil properties and plant growth. Our results indicate that the application of litter inputs and proper management of earthworm populations can have important implications for the provision of ecosystem services (e.g., C sequestration, soil fertility, and plant production) by tropical agroforestry systems.

The social burden and quality of life of patients with haemophilia in Italy

PubMed Central

Kodra, Yllka; Cavazza, Marianna; Schieppati, Arrigo; De Santis, Marta; Armeni, Patrizio; Arcieri, Romano; Calizzani, Gabriele; Fattore, Giovanni; Manzoli, Lamberto; Mantovani, Lorenzo; Taruscio, Domenica

2014-01-01

Background In Italy, the project on the social burden and quality of life (QoL) of patients with haemophilia investigates costs from a society perspective and provides an overview of their quality of life. Moreover, as life expectancy increased in recent years along with new treatment strategies implemented in the last decades, it analyses trends of costs other than drugs simulating impacts during patient whole life. Material and methods We ran a web-based cross-sectional survey supported by the Italian Federation of Haemophilia Societies in recruiting patients with haemophilia and their caregivers. We developed a questionnaire to collect information on demographic characteristics, healthcare and social services consumption, formal and informal care utilisation, productivity loss and quality of life. In particular, quality of life was assessed through the EuroQoL tool. Last, we applied the illness cost method from a society perspective. Results On average, quality of life is worse in adult patients compared to child and caregivers: more than 75% of adult patients declare physical problems, 43% of adult patients and 54% of their parents have anxiety problems. Assuming a society perspective, the estimated mean annual total cost per patient in 2012 is 117,732 €. Drugs represent 92% of total costs. Focusing on costs other than drugs, each additional point of EuroQoL tool implies a costs’ reduction of 279 €. The impact of age varies across age groups: each added year implies a total decrease of costs up to 46.6 years old. Afterwards, every additional year increases costs. Discussion Quality of life of patients with haemophilia and their caregivers improved and it influences positively on consumed resources and on their contribution to the social-economic system. Costs other than drugs for patients with haemophilia follow the same trends of general population. PMID:24922297

Effects of advanced treatment of municipal wastewater on the White River near Indianapolis, Indiana; trends in water quality, 1978-86

USGS Publications Warehouse

Crawford, Charles G.; Wangsness, David J.

1993-01-01

The City of Indianapolis has constructed state-of-the-art advanced municipal wastewater-treatment systems to enlarge and upgrade the existing secondary-treatment processes at its Belmont and Southport treatment plants. These new advanced-wastewater-treatment plants became operational in 1983. A nonparametric statistical procedure--a modified form of the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney rank-sum test--was used to test for trends in time-series water-quality data from four sites on the White River and from the Belmont and Southport wastewater-treatment plants. Time-series data representative of pre-advanced- (1978-1980) and post-advanced- (1983--86) wastewater-treatment conditions were tested for trends, and the results indicate substantial changes in water quality of treated effluent and of the White River downstream from Indianapolis after implementation of advanced wastewater treatment. Water quality from 1981 through 1982 was highly variable due to plant construction. Therefore, this time period was excluded from the analysis. Water quality at sample sites located upstream from the wastewater-treatment plants was relatively constant during the period of study (1978-86). Analysis of data from the two plants and downstream from the plants indicates statistically significant decreasing trends in effluent concentrations of total ammonia, 5-day biochemical-oxygen demand, fecal-coliform bacteria, total phosphate, and total solids at all sites where sufficient data were available for testing. Because of in-plant nitrification, increases in nitrate concentration were statistically significant in the two plants and in the White River. The decrease in ammonia concentrations and 5-day biochemical-oxygen demand in the White River resulted in a statistically significant increasing trend in dissolved-oxygen concentration in the river because of reduced oxygen demand for nitrification and biochemical oxidation processes. Following implementation of advanced wastewater treatment, the number of river-quality samples that failed to meet the water-quality standards for ammonia and dissolved oxygen that apply to the White River decreased substantially.

Manpower Mix for Health Services

PubMed Central

Shuman, Larry J.; Young, John P.; Naddor, Eliezer

1971-01-01

A model is formulated to determine the mix of manpower and technology needed to provide health services of acceptable quality at a minimum total cost to the community. Total costs include both the direct costs associated with providing the services and with developing additional manpower and the indirect costs (shortage costs) resulting from not providing needed services. The model is applied to a hypothetical neighborhood health center, and its sensitivity to alternative policies is investigated by cost-benefit analyses. Possible extensions of the model to include dynamic elements in health delivery systems are discussed, as is its adaptation for use in hospital planning, with a changed objective function. PMID:5095652

Influence of urban area on the water quality of the Campo River basin, Paraná State, Brazil.

PubMed

Carvalho, K Q; Lima, S B; Passig, F H; Gusmão, L K; Souza, D C; Kreutz, C; Belini, A D; Arantes, E J

2015-12-01

The Campo River basin is located on the third plateau of the Paraná State or trap plateau of Paraná, at the middle portion between the rivers Ivaí and Piquiri, southern Brazil, between the coordinates 23° 53 and 24° 10' South Latitude and 52° 15' and 52° 31' West Longitude. The basin has 384 Km² area, being 247 km² in the municipality of Campo Mourão and 137 km² in the municipality of Peabiru, in Paraná State. The Campo River is a left bank tributary of the Mourão River, which flows into the Ivaí River. The objective of this study was to monitor water quality in the Km 119 River and the Campo River, tributaries of the Mourão River, with monthly collection of water samples to determine pH, temperature, turbidity, biochemical oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen, fecal coliforms, total solids, total nitrogen, ammoniacal nitrogen, nitrite, nitrate and total phosphorus. The results obtained were compared with the indices established by the environmental legislation and applied in the determination of the Water Quality Index (WQI) used by the Water Institute of Paraná State, regulating environmental agency. Poor water quality in these rivers presents a worrying scenario for the region, since this river is the main source of water supply for the public system. Results of organic matter, fecal coliforms and total phosphorus were higher than the limits established by Resolution CONAMA 357/2005 to river class 2, specially at downstream of the Km 119 River and the Campo River, due to the significant influence of the urban anthropic activity by the lack of tertiary treatment and also rural by the lack of basic sanitation in this area. Results of WQI of Km 119 River and do Campo River indicated that water quality can be classified as average in 71% and good in 29% of the sites evaluated.

The methodological quality of systematic reviews published in high-impact nursing journals: a review of the literature.

PubMed

Pölkki, Tarja; Kanste, Outi; Kääriäinen, Maria; Elo, Satu; Kyngäs, Helvi

2014-02-01

To analyse systematic review articles published in the top 10 nursing journals to determine the quality of the methods employed within them. Systematic review is defined as a scientific research method that synthesises high-quality scientific knowledge on a given topic. The number of such reviews in nursing science has increased dramatically during recent years, but their methodological quality has not previously been assessed. A review of the literature using a narrative approach. Ranked impact factor scores for nursing journals were obtained from the Journal Citation Report database of the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI Web of Knowledge). All issues from the years 2009 and 2010 of the top 10 ranked journals were included. CINAHL and MEDLINE databases were searched to locate studies using the search terms 'systematic review' and 'systematic literature review'. A total of 39 eligible studies were identified. Their methodological quality was evaluated through the specific criteria of quality assessment, description of synthesis and strengths and weaknesses reported in the included studies. Most of the eligible systematic reviews included several different designs or types of quantitative study. The majority included a quality assessment, and a total of 17 different criteria were identified. The method of synthesis was mentioned in about half of the reviews, the most common being narrative synthesis. The weaknesses of reviews were discussed, while strengths were rarely highlighted. The methodological quality of the systematic reviews examined varied considerably, although they were all published in nursing journals with a high-impact factor. Despite the fact that systematic reviews are considered the most robust source of research evidence, they vary in methodological quality. This point is important to consider in clinical practice when applying the results to patient care. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

The effect of nocturia on sleep quality and daytime function in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Shao, I-Hung; Wu, Chia-Chen; Hsu, Hueih-Shing; Chang, Shyh-Chyi; Wang, Hsu-Hsiang; Chuang, Heng-Chang; Tam, Yuan-Yun

2016-01-01

Nocturia has been proven to have a negative impact on the quality of life and sleep quality in general elderly population. However, there are limited studies on the quantitative effect of nocturia on sleep quality and daytime dysfunction, specifically in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms. During March 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015, a total of 728 patients who visited our urology department due to voiding dysfunction and experienced nocturia at least once per night were enrolled. Three questionnaires were administered to them after obtaining their written consents. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) questionnaire, and International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaire were applied to evaluate their sleep quality, daytime dysfunction, and voiding problems, respectively. Statistical analysis of the impact of nocturia on sleep quality and daytime dysfunction was performed. The mean age of patients was 61 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 2.7. The mean nocturia number was 3.03. The IPSS, PSQI, and ESS scores were 17.56, 8.35, and 8.22, respectively. The nocturia number increased with age and was significantly correlated to ESS score (daytime dysfunction) and PSQI total score (sleep quality) in overall group. Among subgroups divided by age and sex, there was a significant correlation between nocturia number and daytime dysfunction in male patients or patients younger than 65 years. In patients with lower urinary tract symptoms, nocturia number increased with age and was significantly correlated with poor sleep quality. Nocturia plays an important role in patients younger than 65 years in daytime dysfunction.

Quantitative application of sigma metrics in medical biochemistry.

PubMed

Nanda, Sunil Kumar; Ray, Lopamudra

2013-12-01

Laboratory errors are result of a poorly designed quality system in the laboratory. Six Sigma is an error reduction methodology that has been successfully applied at Motorola and General Electric. Sigma (σ) is the mathematical symbol for standard deviation (SD). Sigma methodology can be applied wherever an outcome of a process has to be measured. A poor outcome is counted as an error or defect. This is quantified as defects per million (DPM). A six sigma process is one in which 99.999666% of the products manufactured are statistically expected to be free of defects. Six sigma concentrates, on regulating a process to 6 SDs, represents 3.4 DPM (defects per million) opportunities. It can be inferred that as sigma increases, the consistency and steadiness of the test improves, thereby reducing the operating costs. We aimed to gauge performance of our laboratory parameters by sigma metrics. Evaluation of sigma metrics in interpretation of parameter performance in clinical biochemistry. The six month internal QC (October 2012 to march 2013) and EQAS (external quality assurance scheme) were extracted for the parameters-Glucose, Urea, Creatinine, Total Bilirubin, Total Protein, Albumin, Uric acid, Total Cholesterol, Triglycerides, Chloride, SGOT, SGPT and ALP. Coefficient of variance (CV) were calculated from internal QC for these parameters. Percentage bias for these parameters was calculated from the EQAS. Total allowable errors were followed as per Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) guidelines. Sigma metrics were calculated from CV, percentage bias and total allowable error for the above mentioned parameters. For parameters - Total bilirubin, uric acid, SGOT, SGPT and ALP, the sigma values were found to be more than 6. For parameters - glucose, Creatinine, triglycerides, urea, the sigma values were found to be between 3 to 6. For parameters - total protein, albumin, cholesterol and chloride, the sigma values were found to be less than 3. ALP was the best performer when it was gauzed on the sigma scale, with a sigma metrics value of 8.4 and chloride had the least sigma metrics value of 1.4.

Microbial water quality before and after the repair of a failing onsite wastewater treatment system adjacent to coastal waters

USGS Publications Warehouse

Conn, K.E.; Habteselassie, M.Y.; Denene, Blackwood A.; Noble, R.T.

2012-01-01

Aims: The objective was to assess the impacts of repairing a failing onsite wastewater treatment system (OWTS, i.e., septic system) as related to coastal microbial water quality. Methods and Results: Wastewater, groundwater and surface water were monitored for environmental parameters, faecal indicator bacteria (total coliforms, Escherichia coli, enterococci) and the viral tracer MS2 before and after repairing a failing OWTS. MS2 results using plaque enumeration and quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) often agreed, but inhibition limited the qRT-PCR assay sensitivity. Prerepair, MS2 persisted in groundwater and was detected in the nearby creek; postrepair, it was not detected. In groundwater, total coliform concentrations were lower and E.??coli was not detected, while enterococci concentrations were similar to prerepair levels. E.??coli and enterococci surface water concentrations were elevated both before and after the repair. Conclusions: Repairing the failing OWTS improved groundwater microbial water quality, although persistence of bacteria in surface water suggests that the OWTS was not the singular faecal contributor to adjacent coastal waters. A suite of tracers is needed to fully assess OWTS performance in treating microbial contaminants and related impacts on receiving waters. Molecular methods like qRT-PCR have potential but require optimization. Significance and Impact of Study: This is the first before and after study of a failing OWTS and provides guidance on selection of microbial tracers and methods. ?? 2011 The Authors. Journal of Applied Microbiology ?? 2011 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Watershed safety and quality control by safety threshold method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Da-Wei Tsai, David; Mengjung Chou, Caroline; Ramaraj, Rameshprabu; Liu, Wen-Cheng; Honglay Chen, Paris

2014-05-01

Taiwan was warned as one of the most dangerous countries by IPCC and the World Bank. In such an exceptional and perilous island, we would like to launch the strategic research of land-use management on the catastrophe prevention and environmental protection. This study used the watershed management by "Safety Threshold Method" to restore and to prevent the disasters and pollution on island. For the deluge prevention, this study applied the restoration strategy to reduce total runoff which was equilibrium to 59.4% of the infiltration each year. For the sediment management, safety threshold management could reduce the sediment below the equilibrium of the natural sediment cycle. In the water quality issues, the best strategies exhibited the significant total load reductions of 10% in carbon (BOD5), 15% in nitrogen (nitrate) and 9% in phosphorus (TP). We found out the water quality could meet the BOD target by the 50% peak reduction with management. All the simulations demonstrated the safety threshold method was helpful to control the loadings within the safe range of disasters and environmental quality. Moreover, from the historical data of whole island, the past deforestation policy and the mistake economic projects were the prime culprits. Consequently, this study showed a practical method to manage both the disasters and pollution in a watershed scale by the land-use management.

Identification of water quality management policy of watershed system with multiple uncertain interactions using a multi-level-factorial risk-inference-based possibilistic-probabilistic programming approach.

PubMed

Liu, Jing; Li, Yongping; Huang, Guohe; Fu, Haiyan; Zhang, Junlong; Cheng, Guanhui

2017-06-01

In this study, a multi-level-factorial risk-inference-based possibilistic-probabilistic programming (MRPP) method is proposed for supporting water quality management under multiple uncertainties. The MRPP method can handle uncertainties expressed as fuzzy-random-boundary intervals, probability distributions, and interval numbers, and analyze the effects of uncertainties as well as their interactions on modeling outputs. It is applied to plan water quality management in the Xiangxihe watershed. Results reveal that a lower probability of satisfying the objective function (θ) as well as a higher probability of violating environmental constraints (q i ) would correspond to a higher system benefit with an increased risk of violating system feasibility. Chemical plants are the major contributors to biological oxygen demand (BOD) and total phosphorus (TP) discharges; total nitrogen (TN) would be mainly discharged by crop farming. It is also discovered that optimistic decision makers should pay more attention to the interactions between chemical plant and water supply, while decision makers who possess a risk-averse attitude would focus on the interactive effect of q i and benefit of water supply. The findings can help enhance the model's applicability and identify a suitable water quality management policy for environmental sustainability according to the practical situations.

Rapid and Simultaneous Prediction of Eight Diesel Quality Parameters through ATR-FTIR Analysis.

PubMed

Nespeca, Maurilio Gustavo; Hatanaka, Rafael Rodrigues; Flumignan, Danilo Luiz; de Oliveira, José Eduardo

2018-01-01

Quality assessment of diesel fuel is highly necessary for society, but the costs and time spent are very high while using standard methods. Therefore, this study aimed to develop an analytical method capable of simultaneously determining eight diesel quality parameters (density; flash point; total sulfur content; distillation temperatures at 10% (T10), 50% (T50), and 85% (T85) recovery; cetane index; and biodiesel content) through attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy and the multivariate regression method, partial least square (PLS). For this purpose, the quality parameters of 409 samples were determined using standard methods, and their spectra were acquired in ranges of 4000-650 cm -1 . The use of the multivariate filters, generalized least squares weighting (GLSW) and orthogonal signal correction (OSC), was evaluated to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the models. Likewise, four variable selection approaches were tested: manual exclusion, forward interval PLS (FiPLS), backward interval PLS (BiPLS), and genetic algorithm (GA). The multivariate filters and variables selection algorithms generated more fitted and accurate PLS models. According to the validation, the FTIR/PLS models presented accuracy comparable to the reference methods and, therefore, the proposed method can be applied in the diesel routine monitoring to significantly reduce costs and analysis time.

Rapid and Simultaneous Prediction of Eight Diesel Quality Parameters through ATR-FTIR Analysis

PubMed Central

Hatanaka, Rafael Rodrigues; Flumignan, Danilo Luiz; de Oliveira, José Eduardo

2018-01-01

Quality assessment of diesel fuel is highly necessary for society, but the costs and time spent are very high while using standard methods. Therefore, this study aimed to develop an analytical method capable of simultaneously determining eight diesel quality parameters (density; flash point; total sulfur content; distillation temperatures at 10% (T10), 50% (T50), and 85% (T85) recovery; cetane index; and biodiesel content) through attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy and the multivariate regression method, partial least square (PLS). For this purpose, the quality parameters of 409 samples were determined using standard methods, and their spectra were acquired in ranges of 4000–650 cm−1. The use of the multivariate filters, generalized least squares weighting (GLSW) and orthogonal signal correction (OSC), was evaluated to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the models. Likewise, four variable selection approaches were tested: manual exclusion, forward interval PLS (FiPLS), backward interval PLS (BiPLS), and genetic algorithm (GA). The multivariate filters and variables selection algorithms generated more fitted and accurate PLS models. According to the validation, the FTIR/PLS models presented accuracy comparable to the reference methods and, therefore, the proposed method can be applied in the diesel routine monitoring to significantly reduce costs and analysis time. PMID:29629209

Water quality modeling for urban reach of Yamuna river, India (1999-2009), using QUAL2Kw

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Deepshikha; Kansal, Arun; Pelletier, Greg

2017-06-01

The study was to characterize and understand the water quality of the river Yamuna in Delhi (India) prior to an efficient restoration plan. A combination of collection of monitored data, mathematical modeling, sensitivity, and uncertainty analysis has been done using the QUAL2Kw, a river quality model. The model was applied to simulate DO, BOD, total coliform, and total nitrogen at four monitoring stations, namely Palla, Old Delhi Railway Bridge, Nizamuddin, and Okhla for 10 years (October 1999-June 2009) excluding the monsoon seasons (July-September). The study period was divided into two parts: monthly average data from October 1999-June 2004 (45 months) were used to calibrate the model and monthly average data from October 2005-June 2009 (45 months) were used to validate the model. The R2 for CBODf and TN lies within the range of 0.53-0.75 and 0.68-0.83, respectively. This shows that the model has given satisfactory results in terms of R2 for CBODf, TN, and TC. Sensitivity analysis showed that DO, CBODf, TN, and TC predictions are highly sensitive toward headwater flow and point source flow and quality. Uncertainty analysis using Monte Carlo showed that the input data have been simulated in accordance with the prevalent river conditions.

Are the defined substrate-based methods adequate to determine the microbiological quality of natural recreational waters?

PubMed

Valente, Marta Sofia; Pedro, Paulo; Alonso, M Carmen; Borrego, Juan J; Dionísio, Lídia

2010-03-01

Monitoring the microbiological quality of water used for recreational activities is very important to human public health. Although the sanitary quality of recreational marine waters could be evaluated by standard methods, they are time-consuming and need confirmation. For these reasons, faster and more sensitive methods, such as the defined substrate-based technology, have been developed. In the present work, we have compared the standard method of membrane filtration using Tergitol-TTC agar for total coliforms and Escherichia coli, and Slanetz and Bartley agar for enterococci, and the IDEXX defined substrate technology for these faecal pollution indicators to determine the microbiological quality of natural recreational waters. ISO 17994:2004 standard was used to compare these methods. The IDEXX for total coliforms and E. coli, Colilert, showed higher values than those obtained by the standard method. Enterolert test, for the enumeration of enterococci, showed lower values when compared with the standard method. It may be concluded that more studies to evaluate the precision and accuracy of the rapid tests are required in order to apply them for routine monitoring of marine and freshwater recreational bathing areas. The main advantages of these methods are that they are more specific, feasible and simpler than the standard methodology.

Low-calorie- and calorie-sweetened beverages: diet quality, food intake, and purchase patterns of US household consumers.

PubMed

Piernas, Carmen; Mendez, Michelle A; Ng, Shu Wen; Gordon-Larsen, Penny; Popkin, Barry M

2014-03-01

Few studies have investigated the diet quality of consumers of low-calorie-sweetened (LCS) and calorie-sweetened (CS) beverages. The objective was to examine the dietary quality and adherence to dietary purchasing and consumption patterns of beverage consumers from 2000 to 2010. We analyzed purchases for 140,352 households from the Homescan longitudinal data set 2000-2010 and dietary intake from NHANES 2003-2010 (n = 34,393). We defined mutually exclusive consumer profiles as main exposures: LCS beverages, CS beverages, LCS & CS beverages, and non/low consumers. As main outcomes, we explored dietary quality by using total energy and macronutrients (kcal/d). We performed factor analyses and applied factor scores to derive dietary patterns as secondary outcomes. Using multivariable linear (NHANES) and random-effects (Homescan) models, we investigated the associations between beverage profiles and dietary patterns. We found "prudent" and "breakfast" patterns in Homescan and NHANES, "ready-to-eat meals/fast-food" and "prudent/snacks/LCS desserts" patterns in Homescan, and "protein/potatoes" and "CS desserts/sweeteners" patterns in NHANES. In both data sets, compared with non/low consumers, both CS- and LCS-beverage consumers had a significantly higher total energy from foods, higher energy from total and SFAs, and lower probability of adherence to prudent and breakfast patterns. In Homescan, LCS-beverage consumers had a higher probability of adherence to 2 distinct patterns: a prudent/snacks/LCS dessert pattern and a ready-to-eat meals/fast-food purchasing pattern. Our findings suggest that overall dietary quality is lower in LCS-, CS-, and LCS & CS-beverage consumers relative to non/low consumers. Our study highlights the importance of targeting foods that are linked with sweetened beverages (either LCS or CS) in intervention and policy efforts that aim to improve nutrition in the United States.

A hedging point strategy--balancing effluent quality, economy and robustness in the control of wastewater treatment plants.

PubMed

Ingildsen, P; Olsson, G; Yuan, Z

2002-01-01

An operational space map is an efficient tool to compare a large number of operational strategies to find an optimal choice of setpoints based on a multicriterion. Typically, such a multicriterion includes a weighted sum of cost of operation and effluent quality. Due to the relative high cost of aeration such a definition of optimality result in a relatively high fraction of the effluent total nitrogen in the form of ammonium. Such a strategy may however introduce a risk into operation because a low degree of ammonium removal leads to a low amount of nitrifiers. This in turn leads to a reduced ability to reject event disturbances, such as large variations in the ammonium load, drop in temperature, the presence of toxic/inhibitory compounds in the influent etc. Hedging is a risk minimisation tool, with the aim to "reduce one's risk of loss on a bet or speculation by compensating transactions on the other side" (The Concise Oxford Dictionary (1995)). In wastewater treatment plant operation hedging can be applied by choosing a higher level of ammonium removal to increase the amount of nitrifiers. This is a sensible way to introduce disturbance rejection ability into the multi criterion. In practice, this is done by deciding upon an internal effluent ammonium criterion. In some countries such as Germany, a separate criterion already applies to the level of ammonium in the effluent. However, in most countries the effluent criterion applies to total nitrogen only. In these cases, an internal effluent ammonium criterion should be selected in order to secure proper disturbance rejection ability.

Total Quality Leadership as it Applies to the Surface Navy

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-12-01

with statistical control methods. Dr. Deming opened the eyes of the Japanese. They embraced his ideas and accepted his 14 principles of management shown...move closer to fully embracing Deming’s fourteen principles of management . 3. Shipboard Leadership Compared To TQL Many activities on board Navy ships...The results of the comparison of Deming’s principles of management and the Navalized TQL principles show both similar- ities and differences do appear

Potential Impacts of Organic Wastes on Small Stream Water Quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaushal, S. S.; Groffman, P. M.; Findlay, S. E.; Fischer, D. T.; Burke, R. A.; Molinero, J.

2005-05-01

We monitored concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved oxygen (DO) and other parameters in 17 small streams of the South Fork Broad River (SFBR) watershed on a monthly basis for 15 months. The subwatersheds were chosen to reflect a range of land uses including forested, pasture, mixed, and developed. The SFBR watershed is heavily impacted by organic wastes, primarily from its large poultry industry, but also from its rapidly growing human population. The poultry litter is primarily disposed of by application to pastures. Our monthly monitoring results showed a strong inverse relationship between mean DOC and mean DO and suggested that concentrations of total nitrogen (TN), DOC, and the trace gases nitrous oxide, methane and carbon dioxide are impacted by organic wastes and/or nutrients from animal manure applied to the land and/or human wastes from wastewater treatment plants or septic tanks in these watersheds. Here we estimate the organic waste loads of these watersheds and evaluate the impact of organic wastes on stream DOC and alkalinity concentrations, electrical conductivity, sediment potential denitrification rate and plant stable nitrogen isotope ratios. All of these water quality parameters are significantly correlated with watershed waste loading. DOC is most strongly correlated with total watershed waste loading whereas conductivity, alkalinity, potential denitrification rate and plant stable nitrogen isotope ratio are most strongly correlated with watershed human waste loading. These results suggest that more direct inputs (e.g., wastewater treatment plant effluents, near-stream septic tanks) have a greater relative impact on stream water quality than more dispersed inputs (land applied poultry litter, septic tanks far from streams) in the SFBR watershed. Conductivity, which is generally elevated in organic wastes, is also significantly correlated with total watershed waste loading suggesting it may be a useful indicator of overall watershed waste loading. Although this work was reviewed by EPA and approved for publication, it may not necessarily reflect official Agency policy.

Forecasting daily attendances at an emergency department to aid resource planning

PubMed Central

Sun, Yan; Heng, Bee Hoon; Seow, Yian Tay; Seow, Eillyne

2009-01-01

Background Accurate forecasting of emergency department (ED) attendances can be a valuable tool for micro and macro level planning. Methods Data for analysis was the counts of daily patient attendances at the ED of an acute care regional general hospital from July 2005 to Mar 2008. Patients were stratified into three acuity categories; i.e. P1, P2 and P3, with P1 being the most acute and P3 being the least acute. The autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) method was separately applied to each of the three acuity categories and total patient attendances. Independent variables included in the model were public holiday (yes or no), ambient air quality measured by pollution standard index (PSI), daily ambient average temperature and daily relative humidity. The seasonal components of weekly and yearly periodicities in the time series of daily attendances were also studied. Univariate analysis by t-tests and multivariate time series analysis were carried out in SPSS version 15. Results By time series analyses, P1 attendances did not show any weekly or yearly periodicity and was only predicted by ambient air quality of PSI > 50. P2 and total attendances showed weekly periodicities, and were also significantly predicted by public holiday. P3 attendances were significantly correlated with day of the week, month of the year, public holiday, and ambient air quality of PSI > 50. After applying the developed models to validate the forecast, the MAPE of prediction by the models were 16.8%, 6.7%, 8.6% and 4.8% for P1, P2, P3 and total attendances, respectively. The models were able to account for most of the significant autocorrelations present in the data. Conclusion Time series analysis has been shown to provide a useful, readily available tool for predicting emergency department workload that can be used to plan staff roster and resource planning. PMID:19178716

Air quality mapping using GIS and economic evaluation of health impact for Mumbai City, India.

PubMed

Kumar, Awkash; Gupta, Indrani; Brandt, Jørgen; Kumar, Rakesh; Dikshit, Anil Kumar; Patil, Rashmi S

2016-05-01

Mumbai, a highly populated city in India, has been selected for air quality mapping and assessment of health impact using monitored air quality data. Air quality monitoring networks in Mumbai are operated by National Environment Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). A monitoring station represents air quality at a particular location, while we need spatial variation for air quality management. Here, air quality monitored data of NEERI and BMC were spatially interpolated using various inbuilt interpolation techniques of ArcGIS. Inverse distance weighting (IDW), Kriging (spherical and Gaussian), and spline techniques have been applied for spatial interpolation for this study. The interpolated results of air pollutants sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and suspended particulate matter (SPM) were compared with air quality data of MPCB in the same region. Comparison of results showed good agreement for predicted values using IDW and Kriging with observed data. Subsequently, health impact assessment of a ward was carried out based on total population of the ward and air quality monitored data within the ward. Finally, health cost within a ward was estimated on the basis of exposed population. This study helps to estimate the valuation of health damage due to air pollution. Operating more air quality monitoring stations for measurement of air quality is highly resource intensive in terms of time and cost. The appropriate spatial interpolation techniques can be used to estimate concentration where air quality monitoring stations are not available. Further, health impact assessment for the population of the city and estimation of economic cost of health damage due to ambient air quality can help to make rational control strategies for environmental management. The total health cost for Mumbai city for the year 2012, with a population of 12.4 million, was estimated as USD8000 million.

Evaluation of the APEX Model to Simulate Runoff Quality from Agricultural Fields in the Southern Region of the United States.

PubMed

Ramirez-Avila, John J; Radcliffe, David E; Osmond, Deanna; Bolster, Carl; Sharpley, Andrew; Ortega-Achury, Sandra L; Forsberg, Adam; Oldham, J Larry

2017-11-01

The Agricultural Policy Environmental eXtender (APEX) model has been widely applied to assess phosphorus (P) loss in runoff water and has been proposed as a model to support practical decisions regarding agricultural P management, as well as a model to evaluate tools such as the P Index. The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance of APEX to simulate P losses from agricultural systems to determine its potential use for refinement or replacement of the P Index in the southern region of the United States. Uncalibrated and calibrated APEX model predictions were compared against measured water quality data from row crop fields in North Carolina and Mississippi and pasture fields in Arkansas and Georgia. Calibrated models satisfactorily predicted event-based surface runoff volumes at all sites (Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency [NSE] > 0.47, |percent bias [PBIAS]| < 34) except Arkansas (NSE < 0.11, |PBIAS| < 50) but did not satisfactory simulate sediment, dissolved P, or total P losses in runoff water. The APEX model tended to underestimate dissolved and total P losses from fields where manure was surface applied. The model also overestimated sediments and total P loads during irrigation events. We conclude that the capability of APEX to predict sediment and P losses is limited, and consequently so is the potential for using APEX to make P management recommendations to improve P Indices in the southern United States. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Meaning and barriers to quality care service provision in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services: Qualitative study of stakeholder perspectives.

PubMed

Svirydzenka, Nadzeya; Ronzoni, Pablo; Dogra, Nisha

2017-02-20

Defining quality in health presents many challenges. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) defined quality clinical care as care that is equitable, timely, safe, efficient, effective and patient centred. However, it is not clear how different stakeholders within a child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) understand and/or apply this framework. This project aims to identify key stakeholders" understanding of the meaning of quality in the context of CAMHS. The study sample comprised of three groups: (i) patients and carers, (ii) CAMHS clinical staff, and (iii) commissioners (Total N = 24). Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data and thematic analysis was applied to explore participant's views on the meaning and measurement of quality and how these might reflect the IOM indicators and their relevance in CAMHS. An initial barrier to implementing quality care in CAMHS was the difficulty and limited agreement in defining the meaning of quality care, its measurement and implementation for all participants. Clinical staff defined quality as personal values, a set of practical rules, or clinical discharge rates; while patients suggested being more involved in the decision-making process. Commissioners, while supportive of adequate safeguarding and patient satisfaction procedures, did not explicitly link their view on quality to commissioning guidelines. Identifying practical barriers to implementing quality care was easier for all interviewees and common themes included: lack of meaningful measures, recourses, accountability, and training. All interviewees considered the IOM six markers as comprehensive and relevant to CAMHS. No respondent individually or within one stakeholder group identified more than a few of the indicators or barriers of a quality CAMHS service. However, the composite responses of the respondents enable us to develop a more complete picture of how to improve quality care in practice and guide future research in the area.

Radar correlated imaging for extended target by the combination of negative exponential restraint and total variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, Tingting; Wang, Lianlian; Lu, Guanghua

2017-07-01

Radar correlated imaging (RCI) introduces the optical correlated imaging technology to traditional microwave imaging, which has raised widespread concern recently. Conventional RCI methods neglect the structural information of complex extended target, which makes the quality of recovery result not really perfect, thus a novel combination of negative exponential restraint and total variation (NER-TV) algorithm for extended target imaging is proposed in this paper. The sparsity is measured by a sequential order one negative exponential function, then the 2D total variation technique is introduced to design a novel optimization problem for extended target imaging. And the proven alternating direction method of multipliers is applied to solve the new problem. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm could realize high resolution imaging efficiently for extended target.

Analysis of water-quality trends at two discharge stations; one within Big Cypress National Preserve and one near Biscayne Bay; southern Florida, 1966-94

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lietz, A.C.

2000-01-01

An analysis of water-quality trends was made at two U.S. Geological Survey daily discharge stations in southern Florida. The ESTREND computer program was the principal tool used for the determination of water-quality trends at the Miami Canal station west of Biscayne Bay in Miami and the Tamiami Canal station along U.S. Highway 41 in the Big Cypress National Preserve in Collier County. Variability in water quality caused by both seasonality and streamflow was compensated for by applying the nonparametric Seasonal Kendall trend test to unadjusted concentrations or flow-adjusted concentrations (residuals) determined from linear regression analysis. Concentrations of selected major inorganic constituents and physical characteristics; pH and dissolved oxygen; suspended sediment; nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon species; trace metals; and bacteriological and biological characteristics were determined at the Miami and Tamiami Canal stations. Median and maximum concentrations of selected constituents were compared to the Florida Class III freshwater standards for recreation, propagation, and maintenance of a healthy, well-balanced population of fish and wildlife. The median concentrations of the water-quality constituents and characteristics generally were higher at the Miami Canal station than at the Tamiami Canal station. The maximum value for specific conductance at the Miami Canal station exceeded the State standard. The median and maximum concentrations for ammonia at the Miami and Tamiami Canal stations exceeded the State standard, whereas median dissolved-oxygen concentrations at both stations were below the State standard. Trend results were indicative of either improvement or deterioration in water quality with time. Improvement in water quality at the Miami Canal station was reflected by downward trends in suspended sediment (1987-94), turbidity, (1970-78), total ammonia (1971-94), total phosphorus (1987-94), barium (1978-94), iron (1969-94), and fecal coliform (1976-94). Deterioration in water quality at the same station was indicated by upward trends in specific conductance (1966-94), dissolved solids (1966-94, 1976-94, and 1987-94), chloride (1966-94), potassium (1966-94), magnesium (1966-94), sodium (1966-94), sulfate (1966-94), silica (1966-94), suspended sediment (1974-94), total organic carbon (1970-81), and fecal streptococcus (1987-94). The downward trend in pH (1966-94) was indicative of deterioration in water quality at the Miami Canal station. Improvement in water quality at the Tamiami Canal station was reflected by downward trends in fluoride (1967-93), total ammonia (1970-92), total nitrite plus nitrate (1975-85), and barium (1978-93). Deterioration in water quality at the same station was statistically significant by upward trends in specific conductance (1967-93), dissolved solids (1967-93), chloride (1967-93), sodium (1967-93), potassium (1967-93), magnesium (1967-93), strontium (1967-93), and suspended sediment (1976-93). The downward trend in dissolved oxygen (1970-93) was indicative of deterioration in water quality.

Management of unregulated agricultural nonpoint sources through water quality trading market.

PubMed

Mahjoobi, Emad; Sarang, Amin; Ardestani, Mojtaba

2016-11-01

Water quality trading (WQT) could be an innovative policy to incentivize farmers to implement best management practices (BMPs) for their activities. This study focused on assessment of involving unregulated agricultural nonpoint sources (NPS) into the WQT market in Gharesoo watershed in the west of Iran. It also proposes a methodology to determine location-based trading ratios as well as environmental penalty cost to achieve a more well-designed market structure. Trading activities in different scenarios were described by trading volume (TV), participation rate (PR), total exchanged value (TEV), and other market parameters in order to achieve a better comparison of market performance. Results showed that, by applying NPS to the Gharesoo watershed, total phosphorous (TP) trading market could increase TV, PR, and TEV up to 11, 1.7 and 7.5 times, respectively, depending on which level of BMPs are implemented by them. Additionally, it could save 29% of the total cost of implementing a TP total maximum daily load in this watershed compared to the 'command and control' approach. Furthermore, the agricultural sector could profit by $5.49 million (or $75/ha) by choosing solutions such as terrace systems and filter strips to register into the market. This profit can be allocated to the development of new agricultural technologies.

Analytical performance specifications for external quality assessment - definitions and descriptions.

PubMed

Jones, Graham R D; Albarede, Stephanie; Kesseler, Dagmar; MacKenzie, Finlay; Mammen, Joy; Pedersen, Morten; Stavelin, Anne; Thelen, Marc; Thomas, Annette; Twomey, Patrick J; Ventura, Emma; Panteghini, Mauro

2017-06-27

External Quality Assurance (EQA) is vital to ensure acceptable analytical quality in medical laboratories. A key component of an EQA scheme is an analytical performance specification (APS) for each measurand that a laboratory can use to assess the extent of deviation of the obtained results from the target value. A consensus conference held in Milan in 2014 has proposed three models to set APS and these can be applied to setting APS for EQA. A goal arising from this conference is the harmonisation of EQA APS between different schemes to deliver consistent quality messages to laboratories irrespective of location and the choice of EQA provider. At this time there are wide differences in the APS used in different EQA schemes for the same measurands. Contributing factors to this variation are that the APS in different schemes are established using different criteria, applied to different types of data (e.g. single data points, multiple data points), used for different goals (e.g. improvement of analytical quality; licensing), and with the aim of eliciting different responses from participants. This paper provides recommendations from the European Federation of Laboratory Medicine (EFLM) Task and Finish Group on Performance Specifications for External Quality Assurance Schemes (TFG-APSEQA) and on clear terminology for EQA APS. The recommended terminology covers six elements required to understand APS: 1) a statement on the EQA material matrix and its commutability; 2) the method used to assign the target value; 3) the data set to which APS are applied; 4) the applicable analytical property being assessed (i.e. total error, bias, imprecision, uncertainty); 5) the rationale for the selection of the APS; and 6) the type of the Milan model(s) used to set the APS. The terminology is required for EQA participants and other interested parties to understand the meaning of meeting or not meeting APS.

Multivariate Statistical Analysis of Water Quality data in Indian River Lagoon, Florida

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sayemuzzaman, M.; Ye, M.

2015-12-01

The Indian River Lagoon, is part of the longest barrier island complex in the United States, is a region of particular concern to the environmental scientist because of the rapid rate of human development throughout the region and the geographical position in between the colder temperate zone and warmer sub-tropical zone. Thus, the surface water quality analysis in this region always brings the newer information. In this present study, multivariate statistical procedures were applied to analyze the spatial and temporal water quality in the Indian River Lagoon over the period 1998-2013. Twelve parameters have been analyzed on twelve key water monitoring stations in and beside the lagoon on monthly datasets (total of 27,648 observations). The dataset was treated using cluster analysis (CA), principle component analysis (PCA) and non-parametric trend analysis. The CA was used to cluster twelve monitoring stations into four groups, with stations on the similar surrounding characteristics being in the same group. The PCA was then applied to the similar groups to find the important water quality parameters. The principal components (PCs), PC1 to PC5 was considered based on the explained cumulative variances 75% to 85% in each cluster groups. Nutrient species (phosphorus and nitrogen), salinity, specific conductivity and erosion factors (TSS, Turbidity) were major variables involved in the construction of the PCs. Statistical significant positive or negative trends and the abrupt trend shift were detected applying Mann-Kendall trend test and Sequential Mann-Kendall (SQMK), for each individual stations for the important water quality parameters. Land use land cover change pattern, local anthropogenic activities and extreme climate such as drought might be associated with these trends. This study presents the multivariate statistical assessment in order to get better information about the quality of surface water. Thus, effective pollution control/management of the surface waters can be undertaken.

Application of chemometrics in quality control of Turmeric (Curcuma longa) based on Ultra-violet, Fourier transform-infrared and 1H NMR spectroscopy.

PubMed

Gad, Haidy A; Bouzabata, Amel

2017-12-15

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) belongs to the family Zingiberaceae that is widely used as a spice in food preparations in addition to its biological activities. UV, FT-IR, 1 H NMR in addition to HPLC were applied to construct a metabolic fingerprint for Turmeric in an attempt to assess its quality. 30 samples were analyzed, and then principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) were utilized to assess the differences and similarities between collected samples. PCA score plot based on both HPLC and UV spectroscopy showed the same discriminatory pattern, where the samples were segregated into four main groups depending on their total curcuminoids content. The results revealed that UV could be utilized as a simple and rapid alternative for HPLC. However, FT-IR failed to discriminate between the same species. By applying 1 H NMR, the metabolic variability between samples was more evident in the essential oils/fatty acid region. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Total Quality Management Implementation Strategy: Directorate of Quality Assurance

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-05-01

Total Quality Control Harrington, H. James The Improvement Process Imai, Masaaki Kaizen Ishikawa , Kaoru What is Total Quality Control Ishikawa ... Kaoru Statistical Quality Control Juran, J. M. Managerial Breakthrough Juran, J. M. Quality Control Handbook Mizuno, Ed Managing for Quality Improvements

[Effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with conventional nitrogen fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses].

PubMed

Yang, Jun-gang; Xu, Kai; Tong, Er-jian; Cao, Bing; Ni, Xiao-hui; Xu, Jun-xiang

2010-12-01

An open field experiment was conducted to study the effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with rapidly available chemical N fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses, including ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N accumulation and leaching in Beijing suburb. The results showed that a combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer (total N rate 150 kg x hm(-2)) did not induce the reduction of Chinese cabbage yield, and decreased the leaf nitrate and organic acid contents significantly, compared with conventional urea N application (300 kg x hm(-2)), and had no significant difference in the cabbage yield and leaf nitrate content, compared with applying 150 kg x hm(-2) of urea N. The combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer improved the N use efficiency of Chinese cabbage, and reduced the ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N leaching. At harvest, the NO3- -N concentrations in 20-40, 60-80 and 80-100 cm soil layers were significantly lower in the combined application treatment than in urea N treatment.

Improving quality-of-life outcomes for patients with cancer through mediating effects of depressive symptoms and functional status: a three-path mediation model.

PubMed

Hsu, Mei-Chi; Tu, Chun-Hsien

2014-09-01

To test a hypothetical three-path mediation model evaluating the effects of functional status and depressive symptoms on the relationship between fatigue and quality of life in patients with cancer on the basis of the Theory of Unpleasant Symptoms. Patients with cancer often experience two or more concurrent, interrelated, mutually influential symptoms. Multiple unpleasant symptoms that have been proposed as mediating variables affecting quality of life in a model proposed in recent cancer studies are scanty. This study was a cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational design. Three hundred and twenty-six patients with cancer from oncology clinics were recruited in Taiwan between 2010-2011. Mediation models were tested and confirmed by applying structural modelling using Analysis of Moment Structures and the joint significance test. Fatigue affects patient quality of life directly or indirectly through functional status and depressive symptoms. These two mediating variables exhibited direct effects on quality of life. A path analysis approach revealed that 47·28 and 67·70% of the total effects of functional status and depressive symptoms, respectively, on the quality-of-life mediation models are attributable to 29·6 and 44·7% of the total effects between fatigue and quality of life, which mediated through two mediators, respectively. Quality of life may be enhanced by simultaneously improving physiological and psychological factors. An understanding of mediating effects is valuable in nursing care of patients with cancer, particularly in the early phase of treatment or in newly diagnosed stages I-III or recently treated patients with cancer in different disease stages. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effect of edible coatings on bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacity of tomatoes at different maturity stages.

PubMed

Dávila-Aviña, Jorge E; Villa-Rodríguez, José A; Villegas-Ochoa, Mónica A; Tortoledo-Ortiz, Orlando; Olivas, Guadalupe I; Ayala-Zavala, J Fernando; González-Aguilar, Gustavo A

2014-10-01

This work evaluated the effect of carnauba and mineral oil coatings on the bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacity of tomato fruits (cv. "Grandela"). Carnauba and mineral oil coatings were applied on fresh tomatoes at two maturity stages (breaker and pink) over 28 day of storage at 10 °C was evaluated. Bioactive compound and antioxidant activity assays included total phenols, total flavonoids, ascorbic acid (ASA), lycopene, DPPH radical scavenging activity (%RSA), trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) and oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay (ORAC). The total phenolic, flavonoid and lycopene contents were significantly lower for coated fruit than control fruits. However, ascorbic acid content was highest in fruits treated with carnauba, followed by mineral oil coating and control fruits. The ORAC values were highest in breaker tomatoes coated with carnauba wax, followed by mineral oil-coated fruits and controls. No significant differences in ORAC values were observed in pink tomatoes. % RSA and TEAC values were higher for controls than for coated fruit. Edible coatings preserve the overall quality of tomatoes during storage without affecting the nutritional quality of fruit. We found that the physiological response to the coatings is in function of the maturity stage of tomatoes. The information obtained in this study support to use of edible coating as a safe and good alternative to preserve tomato quality, and that the changes of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of tomato fruits, was not negatively affected. This approach can be used by producers to preserve tomato quality.

Effects of agricultural best-management practices on the Brush Run Creek headwaters, Adams County, Pennsylvania, prior to and during nutrient management

USGS Publications Warehouse

Langland, M.J.; Fishel, D.K.

1996-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Susquehanna River Basin Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, investigated the effects of agricultural best-management practices on surface-water quality as part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay Program. This report characterizes a 0.63-square- mile agricultural watershed underlain by shale, mudstone, and red arkosic sandstone in the Lower Susquehanna River Basin. The water quality of the Brush Run Creek site was studied from October 1985 through September 1991, prior to and during the implementation of nutrient management designed to reduce sediment and nutrient discharges into Conewago Creek, a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay. The original study area was 0.38 square mile and included an area immediately upstream from a manure lagoon. The study area was increased to 0.63 square mile in the fall of 1987 after an extensive tile-drain network was discovered upstream and downstream from the established streamflow gage, and the farm owner made plans to spray irrigate manure to the downstream fields. Land use for about 64 percent of the 0.63 square mile watershed is cropland, 14 percent is pasture, 7 percent is forest, and the remaining 15 percent is yards, buildings, water, or gardens. About 73 percent of the cropland was used to produce corn during the study. The average annual animal population consisted of 57,000 chickens, 1,530 hogs, and 15 sheep during the study. About 59,340 pounds of nitrogen and 13,710 pounds of phosphorus were applied as manure and commercial fertilizer to fields within the subbasin during the 3-year period prior to implementation of nutrient management. During nutrient management, about 14 percent less nitrogen and 57 percent less phosphorus were applied as commercial and manure fertilizer. Precipitation totaled 209 inches, or 13 percent less than the long-term normal, during the 6-year study. Concentrations of total ammonia in precipitation were as high as 2.7 mg/L (milligrams per liter); in dry deposition the concentrations were as high as 5.4 mg/L, probably because of the ammonia that had volatilized from the manure-storage lagoon. Nitrate nitrogen in the upper 4 feet of the soil ranged from 17 to 452 pounds per acre and soluble phosphorus content ranged from 0.29 to 65 pounds per acre. The maximum concentration of total nitrogen was 2,400 mg/L on September 10, 1986, in discharge from the tile drain near the streamflow gage. Median concentrations of total nitrogen and dissolved nitrite plus nitrate in base flow at the water-quality gage were 14 mg/L and 4.4 mg/L, respectively; prior to nutrient management and during nutrient management, median concentrations were 14 mg/L and 6.2 mg/L, respectively. Significant reductions in total phosphorus and suspended-sediment concentrations occurred at the water-quality gage. The maximum concentrations of total phosphorus (160 mg/L) and suspended sediment (3,530 mg/L) were measured at a tile line above the water-quality gage. Concentrations of total nitrogen, dissolved ammonia, and total phosphorus in base flow increased during dry periods when discharges from the tile drain were not diluted. During nutrient management, only base-flow loads of suspended sediment increased. Total streamflow was about 121.8 inches. About 81 percent was storm runoff. Loads of total nitrogen, total phosphorus in stormflow, and suspended sediment increased 14, 44, and 41 percent during nutrient management, respectively. A load of about 787,780 pounds of sediment, 22,418 pounds of nitrogen, and 5,479 pounds of phosphorus was measured during 214 sampled stormflow days that represented 84 percent of the stormflow. About 812,924 pounds of sediment, 38,421 pounds of nitrogen, and 6,377 pounds of phosphorus were discharged during the 6-year study.

[The conceptual bases for an entrepreneurial management of local health systems].

PubMed

Yepes, F J; Durán-Arenas, L

1994-01-01

Health management has become a fashion and it is now common to talk about strategic or service management, or of total quality management applied to health systems. However, all these elements of business management are being translated to health systems without a previous analysis on the implicit health model and the rationality of the prevalent production functions, which can lead to a higher level of efficiency but with an inadequate use of resources. This paper suggests the importance of integrating the advances in management and health sciences and proposes what are considered to be the conceptual basis for the design of a management tool geared to conduct local health systems with effectiveness, efficiency, quality and equity.

Total Quality and Organization Development. Total Quality Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindsay, William M.; Petrick, Joseph A.

As the global business environment becomes more turbulent, quality management seems more indispensable. This book offers strategies for integrating the theory and practice of Total Quality Management (TQM) with organizational-development (OD) theory at all organizational levels. Chapter 1 answers the question "Why Total Quality Management and…

WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region: A Systematic Review on Environmental Noise and Adverse Birth Outcomes.

PubMed

Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J; Ristovska, Gordana; Dadvand, Payam

2017-10-19

Introduction: Three recent systematic reviews suggested a relationship between noise exposure and adverse birth outcomes. The aim of this review was to evaluate the evidence for the World Health Organization (WHO) noise guidelines and conduct an updated systematic review of environmental noise, specifically aircraft and road traffic noise and birth outcomes, such as preterm birth, low birth weight, being small for gestational age and congenital malformations. Materials and methods : We reviewed again all the papers on environmental noise and birth outcomes included in the previous three systematic reviews and conducted a systematic search on noise and birth outcomes to update previous reviews. Web of Science, PubMed and Embase electronic databases were searched for papers published between June 2014 (end date of previous systematic review) and December 2016 using a list of specific search terms. Studies were also screened in the reference list of relevant reviews/articles. Further inclusion and exclusion criteria for the studies provided by the WHO expert group were applied. Risk of bias was assessed according to criteria from the Newcastle-Ottawa quality assessment scale for case-control and cohort studies. Finally, we applied the GRADE principles to our systematic review in a reproducible and appropriate way for judgment about quality of evidence. Results: In total, 14 studies are included in this review, six studies on aircraft noise and birth outcomes, five studies (two with more or less the same population) on road traffic noise and birth outcomes and three related studies on total ambient noise that is likely to be mostly traffic noise that met the criteria. The number of studies on environmental noise and birth outcomes is small and the quality of evidence generally ranges from very low to low, particularly in case of the older studies. The quality is better for the more recent traffic noise and birth outcomes studies. As there were too few studies, we did not conduct meta-analyses. Discussion: This systematic review is supported by previous systematic reviews and meta-analyses that suggested that there may be some suggestive evidence for an association between environmental noise exposure and birth outcomes, although they pointed more generally to a stronger role of occupational noise exposure, which tends to be higher and last longer. Very strict criteria for inclusion and exclusion of studies, performance of quality assessment for risk of bias, and finally applying GRADE principles for judgment of quality of evidence are the strengths of this review. We found evidence of very low quality for associations between aircraft noise and preterm birth, low birth weight and congenital anomalies, and low quality evidence for an association between road traffic noise and low birth weight, preterm birth and small for gestational age. Further high quality studies are required to establish such associations. Future studies are recommended to apply robust exposure assessment methods (e.g., modeled or measured noise levels at bedroom façade), disentangle associations for different sources of noise as well as daytime and nighttime noise, evaluate the impacts of noise evens (that stand out of the noise background), and control the analyses for confounding factors, such as socioeconomic status, lifestyle factors and other environmental factors, especially air pollution.

WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region: A Systematic Review on Environmental Noise and Adverse Birth Outcomes

PubMed Central

Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J.; Ristovska, Gordana; Dadvand, Payam

2017-01-01

Introduction: Three recent systematic reviews suggested a relationship between noise exposure and adverse birth outcomes. The aim of this review was to evaluate the evidence for the World Health Organization (WHO) noise guidelines and conduct an updated systematic review of environmental noise, specifically aircraft and road traffic noise and birth outcomes, such as preterm birth, low birth weight, being small for gestational age and congenital malformations. Materials and methods: We reviewed again all the papers on environmental noise and birth outcomes included in the previous three systematic reviews and conducted a systematic search on noise and birth outcomes to update previous reviews. Web of Science, PubMed and Embase electronic databases were searched for papers published between June 2014 (end date of previous systematic review) and December 2016 using a list of specific search terms. Studies were also screened in the reference list of relevant reviews/articles. Further inclusion and exclusion criteria for the studies provided by the WHO expert group were applied. Risk of bias was assessed according to criteria from the Newcastle-Ottawa quality assessment scale for case-control and cohort studies. Finally, we applied the GRADE principles to our systematic review in a reproducible and appropriate way for judgment about quality of evidence. Results: In total, 14 studies are included in this review, six studies on aircraft noise and birth outcomes, five studies (two with more or less the same population) on road traffic noise and birth outcomes and three related studies on total ambient noise that is likely to be mostly traffic noise that met the criteria. The number of studies on environmental noise and birth outcomes is small and the quality of evidence generally ranges from very low to low, particularly in case of the older studies. The quality is better for the more recent traffic noise and birth outcomes studies. As there were too few studies, we did not conduct meta-analyses. Discussion: This systematic review is supported by previous systematic reviews and meta-analyses that suggested that there may be some suggestive evidence for an association between environmental noise exposure and birth outcomes, although they pointed more generally to a stronger role of occupational noise exposure, which tends to be higher and last longer. Very strict criteria for inclusion and exclusion of studies, performance of quality assessment for risk of bias, and finally applying GRADE principles for judgment of quality of evidence are the strengths of this review. Conclusions: We found evidence of very low quality for associations between aircraft noise and preterm birth, low birth weight and congenital anomalies, and low quality evidence for an association between road traffic noise and low birth weight, preterm birth and small for gestational age. Further high quality studies are required to establish such associations. Future studies are recommended to apply robust exposure assessment methods (e.g., modeled or measured noise levels at bedroom façade), disentangle associations for different sources of noise as well as daytime and nighttime noise, evaluate the impacts of noise evens (that stand out of the noise background), and control the analyses for confounding factors, such as socioeconomic status, lifestyle factors and other environmental factors, especially air pollution. PMID:29048350

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lovill, J.E.; Sullivan, T.J.; Weichel, R.L.

A total ozone retrieval model has been developed to process radiance data gathered by a satellite-mounted multichannel filter radiometer (MFR). Extensive effort went into theoretical radiative transfer modeling, a retrieval scheme was developed, and the technique was applied to the MFR radiance measurements. The high quality of the total ozone retrieval results was determined through comparisons with Dobson measurements. Included in the report are global total ozone maps for 20 days between May 12 and July 5, 1977. A comparison of MFR results for 13 days in June 1977 with Dobson spectrophotometer measurements of ozone for the same period showedmore » good agreement: there was a root-mean-square difference of 6.2% (equivalent to 20.2 m.atm.cm). The estimated global total ozone value for June 1977 (296 m.atm.cm) was in good agreement with satellite backscatter ultraviolet data for June 1970 (304 m.atm.cm) and June 1971 (preliminary data--299 m.atm.cm).« less

An efficient method for purifying high quality RNA from wheat pistils.

PubMed

Manickavelu, A; Kambara, Kumiko; Mishina, Kohei; Koba, Takato

2007-02-15

Many methods are available for total RNA extraction from plants, except the floral organs like wheat pistils containing high levels of polysaccharides that bind/or co-precipitate with RNA. In this protocol, a simple and effective method for extracting total RNA from small and feathery wheat pistils has been developed. Lithium chloride (LiCl) and phenol:chloroform:isoamylalcohol (PCI) were employed and the samples were ground in microcentrifuge tube using plastic pestle. A jacket of liquid nitrogen and simplified procedures were applied to ensure thorough grinding of the pistils and to minimize the samples loss. These measures substantially increased the recovery of total RNA (approximately 50%) in the extraction process. Reliable differential display by cDNA-AFLP was successfully achieved with the total RNA after DNase treatment and reverse transcription. This method is also practicable for gene expression and gene regulation studies in floral parts of other plants.

Developing students' worksheets applying soft skill-based scientific approach for improving building engineering students' competencies in vocational high schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suparno, Sudomo, Rahardjo, Boedi

2017-09-01

Experts and practitioners agree that the quality of vocational high schools needs to be greatly improved. Many construction services have voiced their dissatisfaction with today's low-quality vocational high school graduates. The low quality of graduates is closely related to the quality of the teaching and learning process, particularly teaching materials. In their efforts to improve the quality of vocational high school education, the government have implemented Curriculum 2013 (K13) and supplied teaching materials. However, the results of monitoring and evaluation done by the Directorate of Vocational High School, Directorate General of Secondary Education (2014), the provision of tasks for students in the teaching materials was totally inadequate. Therefore, to enhance the quality and the result of the instructional process, there should be provided students' worksheets that can stimulate and improve students' problem-solving skills and soft skills. In order to develop worksheets that can meet the academic requirements, the development needs to be in accordance with an innovative learning approach, which is the soft skill-based scientific approach.

A linked hydrodynamic and water quality model for the Salton Sea

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chung, E.G.; Schladow, S.G.; Perez-Losada, J.; Robertson, Dale M.

2008-01-01

A linked hydrodynamic and water quality model was developed and applied to the Salton Sea. The hydrodynamic component is based on the one-dimensional numerical model, DLM. The water quality model is based on a new conceptual model for nutrient cycling in the Sea, and simulates temperature, total suspended sediment concentration, nutrient concentrations, including PO4-3, NO3-1 and NH4+1, DO concentration and chlorophyll a concentration as functions of depth and time. Existing water temperature data from 1997 were used to verify that the model could accurately represent the onset and breakup of thermal stratification. 1999 is the only year with a near-complete dataset for water quality variables for the Salton Sea. The linked hydrodynamic and water quality model was run for 1999, and by adjustment of rate coefficients and other water quality parameters, a good match with the data was obtained. In this article, the model is fully described and the model results for reductions in external phosphorus load on chlorophyll a distribution are presented. ?? 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Patient-Reported Outcomes and Total Health Care Expenditure in Prediction of Patient Satisfaction: Results From a National Study.

PubMed

Hung, Man; Zhang, Weiping; Chen, Wei; Bounsanga, Jerry; Cheng, Christine; Franklin, Jeremy D; Crum, Anthony B; Voss, Maren W; Hon, Shirley D

2015-01-01

Health care quality is often linked to patient satisfaction. Yet, there is a lack of national studies examining the relationship between patient satisfaction, patient-reported outcomes, and medical expenditure. The aim of this study is to examine the contribution of physical health, mental health, general health, and total health care expenditures to patient satisfaction using a longitudinal, nationally representative sample. Using data from the 2010-2011 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, analyses were conducted to predict patient satisfaction from patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditures. The study sample consisted of adult participants (N=10,157), with sampling weights representative of 233.26 million people in the United States. The results indicated that patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditure were associated with patient satisfaction such that higher physical and mental function, higher general health status, and higher total health care expenditure were associated with higher patient satisfaction. We found that patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditure had a significant relationship with patient satisfaction. As more emphasis is placed on health care value and quality, this area of research will become increasingly needed and critical questions should be asked about what we value in health care and whether we can find a balance between patient satisfaction, outcomes, and expenditures. Future research should apply big data analytics to investigate whether there is a differential effect of patient-reported outcomes and medical expenditures on patient satisfaction across different medical specialties.

Effect of wastewater quality parameters on coliform inactivation by tin oxide anodes.

PubMed

Teel, Amy L; Watts, Richard J

2018-04-16

The effect of six water quality constituents on wastewater effluent disinfection by tin oxide anodes (TOAs) was investigated in single cell laboratory reactors. Several concentrations of suspended solids, chemical oxygen demand (COD), alkalinity, ammonia-nitrogen, nitrite-nitrogen, and nitrate-nitrogen were added to media containing 10 6 total coliform bacteria mL -1 . Current was applied through the TOAs, and coliform bacteria viability was analyzed over time. Over 99.9% inactivation of coliform bacteria was found over 15 min in TOA reactors. Concentrations of the six water quality constituents typical of concentrations found in wastewaters had no effect on TOA disinfection efficacy. The results of this research demonstrate that TOAs, which could potentially be powered by solar panels, have potential as a sustainable disinfection process compared to chlorine, ozone, and ultraviolet light.

Flared landing approach flying qualities. Volume 2: Appendices

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weingarten, Norman C.; Berthe, Charles J., Jr.; Rynaski, Edmund G.; Sarrafian, Shahan K.

1986-01-01

An in-flight research study was conducted utilizing the USAF/Total In-Flight Simulator (TIFS) to investigate longitudinal flying qualities for the flared landing approach phase of flight. A consistent set of data were generated for: determining what kind of command response the pilot prefers/requires in order to flare and land an aircraft with precision, and refining a time history criterion that took into account all the necessary variables and the characteristics that would accurately predict flying qualities. Seven evaluation pilots participated representing NASA Langley, NASA Dryden, Calspan, Boeing, Lockheed, and DFVLR (Braunschweig, Germany). The results of the first part of the study provide guidelines to the flight control system designer, using MIL-F-8785-(C) as a guide, that yield the dynamic behavior pilots prefer in flared landings. The results of the second part provide the flying qualities engineer with a derived flying qualities predictive tool which appears to be highly accurate. This time-domain predictive flying qualities criterion was applied to the flight data as well as six previous flying qualities studies, and the results indicate that the criterion predicted the flying qualities level 81% of the time and the Cooper-Harper pilot rating, within + or - 1%, 60% of the time.

Flared landing approach flying qualities. Volume 1: Experiment design and analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weingarten, Norman C.; Berthe, Charles J., Jr.; Rynaski, Edmund G.; Sarrafian, Shahan K.

1986-01-01

An inflight research study was conducted utilizing the USAF Total Inflight Simulator (TIFS) to investigate longitudinal flying qualities for the flared landing approach phase of flight. The purpose of the experiment was to generate a consistent set of data for: (1) determining what kind of commanded response the pilot prefers in order to flare and land an airplane with precision, and (2) refining a time history criterion that took into account all the necessary variables and their characteristics that would accurately predict flying qualities. The result of the first part provides guidelines to the flight control system designer, using MIL-F-8785-(C) as a guide, that yield the dynamic behavior pilots perfer in flared landings. The results of the second part provides the flying qualities engineer with a newly derived flying qualities predictive tool which appears to be highly accurate. This time domain predictive flying qualities criterion was applied to the flight data as well as six previous flying qualities studies, and the results indicate that the criterion predicted the flying qualities level 81% of the time and the Cooper-Harper pilot rating, within + or - 1, 60% of the time.

Environmental quality in sediments of Cadiz and Algeciras Bays based on a weight of evidence approach (southern Spanish coast).

PubMed

Usero, José Antonio; Rosado, Daniel; Usero, José; Morillo, José

2016-09-15

This research applies an integrated sediment quality assessment method using a weight of evidence approach to Cadiz and Algeciras Bays (southern Spain). The method is composed of several analyses (particle size profile, aqua regia extractable metals, acid labile metals, total organic carbon, toxicity bioassay with Photobacterium phosphoreum and macrobenthic community alteration). The proposed method provides a single result, the environmental degradation index (EDI). EDI defined samples as low degraded (outer areas of both bays) and moderately degraded (Inner Bay of Cadiz Bay, the surroundings of Algeciras port and the northern part of Algeciras Bay). These samples showed the highest concentration of aqua regia extractable metals, which exceeded effects range-low (ERL) for Zn (51-176mg/l), Cu (11-54mg/l), As (4.3-9.5mg/l), Hg (0.17-0.28mg/l), Ni (23-82mg/l), and. Cr (37-134mg/l). They also exceeded some quality criteria for total organic carbon (4.0-6.5%) and toxicity (120-240TU/g) and showed poor results for macrobenthic community. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Mediating Effect of Kaizen between Total Quality Management (TQM) and Business Performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shan, Ang Wei; Fauzi Ahmad, Mohd; Hisyamudin Muhd Nor, Nik

2016-11-01

Every customer preference is different but yet important. The global market is shifting rapidly, organizations are needed to continuously identify new opportunity to obtain competitive advantages. Literature suggested that manufacturing companies are needed to differentiate themselves through emphasize on quality and continuous improvement in product and services as a crucial part to secure and success in the future. The Total Quality Management (TQM) practices has developed a strong bearing on growth and competitiveness in market. Therefore, a proper continuous improvement (Kaizen) practice is needed to eliminate waste and value added in production to remain competitiveness and retained the potential customer. However, based on the previous study it had indicated an inconsistent result between TQM and BP. Besides that, researcher also less emphasized on mediator in previous work. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to recommend the relationship between TQM and business performance with a mediator's effect of Kaizen. This proposed model attempt to create knowledge to both academician and company players to acquire a better understanding among the TQM and Kaizen practices. Consequently, the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) techniques is applying to identify and evaluate the relationship among TQM, Kaizen, and business performance in developing a new TQM model.

Evaluation of micro-organism-detaching efficacy from meat samples by spindle or stomacher treatment and quality analysis of suspensions.

PubMed

Kim, S-J; Kim, D-K; Kang, D-H

2016-04-01

We investigated and compared the efficacy of a new apparatus for detaching micro-organisms from meat samples. The efficacy of Spindle and stomacher in detaching micro-organisms from meat samples was evaluated. Also, evaluation of appropriateness of suspensions generated by both methods for carrying out molecular biological analysis was implemented. A nearly identical correlation and high R(2) were obtained between Spindle and stomacher in Aerobic Plate Count (APC), and no significant differences were observed in detachment of three major foodborne pathogens. The suspension generated by the Spindle showed lower turbidity and total protein concentration. Also, significantly different threshold cycles were observed in Real-time PCR analysis using suspensions generated by both methods. The Spindle shows nearly identical efficacy with stomacher treatment in detaching micro-organisms from meat samples. Furthermore, the high quality of suspensions generated by the Spindle, in terms of turbidity and total protein assay, allows for a lower threshold cycle than stomached suspension in Real-time PCR. The Spindle could be an alternative method for detaching micro-organisms, yielding a higher quality of suspensions which may be better suited for further molecular microbiological analysis. © 2016 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Quality of life and cosmetic result of single-port access endoscopic thyroidectomy via axillary approach in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma.

PubMed

Huang, Jian-Kang; Ma, Ling; Song, Wen-Hua; Lu, Bang-Yu; Huang, Yu-Bin; Dong, Hui-Ming

2016-01-01

Endoscopic thyroidectomy for minimally invasive thyroid surgery has been widely applied in the past decade. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of single-port access transaxillary totally endoscopic thyroidectomy on the postoperative outcomes and functional parameters, including quality of life and cosmetic result in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Seventy-five patients with PTC who underwent endoscopic thyroidectomy via a single-port access transaxillary approach were included (experimental group). A total of 123 patients with PTC who were subjected to conventional open total thyroidectomy served as the control group. The health-related quality of life and cosmetic and satisfaction outcomes were assessed postoperatively. The mean operation time was significantly increased in the experimental group. The physiological functions and social functions in the two groups were remarkably augmented after 6 months of surgery. However, there was no significant difference in the scores of speech and taste between the two groups at the indicated time of 1 month and 6 months. In addition, the scores for appearance, satisfaction with appearance, role-physical, bodily pain, and general health in the experimental group were better than those in the control group at 1 month and 6 months after surgery. The single-port access transaxillary totally endoscopic thyroidectomy is safe and feasible for the treatment of patients with PTC. The subjects who underwent this technique have a good perception of their general state of health and are likely to participate in social activities. It is worthy of being clinically used for patients with PTC.

Trends in selected water-quality characteristics, Flathead River at Flathead, British Columbia, and at Columbia Falls, Montana, water years, 1975-86

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cary, L.E.

1989-01-01

Data for selected water quality variables were evaluated for trends at two sampling stations--Flathead River at Flathead, British Columbia (Flathead station) and Flathead River at Columbia Falls, Montana (Columbia Falls station). The results were compared between stations. The analyses included data from water years 1975-86 at the Flathead station and water years 1979-86 at the Columbia Falls station. The seasonal Kendall test was applied to adjusted concentrations for variables related to discharge and to unadjusted concentrations for the remaining variables. Slope estimates were made for variables with significant trends unless data were reported as less than the detection limit. At the Flathead station, concentrations of dissolved solids, calcium, magnesium, sodium, dissolved nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen (total and dissolved), total organic nitrogen, and total phosphorus increased during the study period. Concentrations of total nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen and dissolved iron decreased during the same period. At the Columbia Falls station, concentrations increased for calcium and magnesium and decreased for sulfate and dissolved phosphorus. No trends were detected for 10 other variables tested at each station. Data for the Flathead station were reanalyzed for water years 1979-86. Trends in the data increased for magnesium and dissolved nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen and decreased for dissolved iron. Magnesium was the only variable that displayed a trend (increasing) at both stations. The increasing trends that were detected probably will not adversely affect the water quality of the Flathead River in the near future. (USGS)

Phenolics, flavonoids, antioxidant activity and cyanogenic glycosides of organic and mineral-base fertilized cassava tubers.

PubMed

Omar, Nur Faezah; Hassan, Siti Aishah; Yusoff, Umi Kalsom; Abdullah, Nur Ashikin Psyquay; Wahab, Puteri Edaroyati Megat; Sinniah, Umarani

2012-02-27

A field study was conducted to determine the effect of organic and mineral-based fertilizers on phytochemical contents in the tubers of two cassava varieties. Treatments were arranged in a split plot design with three replicates. The main plot was fertilizer source (vermicompost, empty fruit bunch compost and inorganic fertilizer) and sub-plot was cassava variety (Medan and Sri Pontian). The amount of fertilizer applied was based on 180 kg K(2)O ha-1. The tubers were harvested and analyzed for total flavonoids, total phenolics, antioxidant activity and cyanogenic glucoside content. Total phenolic and flavonoid compounds were determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu assay and aluminium chloride colorimetric method, respectively. Different sources of fertilizer, varieties and their interactions were found to have a significant effect on phytochemical content. The phenolic and flavonoid content were significantly higher (p < 0.01) in the vermicompost treatment compared to mineral fertilizer and EFB compost. The total flavonoids and phenolics content of vermicompost treated plants were 39% and 38% higher, respectively, than those chemically fertilized. The antioxidant activity determined using the DPPH and FRAP assays were high with application of organic fertilizer. Cyanogenic glycoside levels were decreased with the application of organic fertilizer. Among the two types of compost, vermicompost resulted in higher nutritional value of cassava tubers. Medan variety with application of vermicompost showed the most promising nutritional quality. Since the nutritional quality of cassava can be improved by organic fertilization, organic fertilizer should be used in place of chemical fertilizer for environmentally sustainable production of better quality cassava.

Accelerating an Ordered-Subset Low-Dose X-Ray Cone Beam Computed Tomography Image Reconstruction with a Power Factor and Total Variation Minimization.

PubMed

Huang, Hsuan-Ming; Hsiao, Ing-Tsung

2016-01-01

In recent years, there has been increased interest in low-dose X-ray cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) in many fields, including dentistry, guided radiotherapy and small animal imaging. Despite reducing the radiation dose, low-dose CBCT has not gained widespread acceptance in routine clinical practice. In addition to performing more evaluation studies, developing a fast and high-quality reconstruction algorithm is required. In this work, we propose an iterative reconstruction method that accelerates ordered-subsets (OS) reconstruction using a power factor. Furthermore, we combine it with the total-variation (TV) minimization method. Both simulation and phantom studies were conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Results show that the proposed method can accelerate conventional OS methods, greatly increase the convergence speed in early iterations. Moreover, applying the TV minimization to the power acceleration scheme can further improve the image quality while preserving the fast convergence rate.

[Dental loss and prosthetic replacement expectation: qualitative study].

PubMed

Silva, Maria Elisa de Souza E; Magalhães, Cláudia Silami de; Ferreira, Efigênia Ferreira E

2010-05-01

This qualitative research analyses the repercussions of total dental loss on people's quality of life. The Oral Health Impact Profile short-form (OHIP14) was applied to 50 volunteers, and after analyzing the results, 13 out of those 50, were selected to be individually interviewed in an opened questions script. The criteria to select these 13 people were: perception of the impact of mouth condition on quality of life measured by the score reached on OHIP. We tried to comprise the sample with a good variety, according to the profile of the initial sample. After analyzing people's statements, it was possible to verify that dental loss had strong negative consequences on people's life, like shame, difficulty to eat, impact on social relationship and feeling of not being complete. The possibility of having their teeth replaced generates some anxiety. Although being aware that wearing total prosthesis represents some sacrifices, people considered it worthwhile because the possibility of regaining the social pattern and the self-image is renewed.

Meta-RaPS Algorithm for the Aerial Refueling Scheduling Problem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaplan, Sezgin; Arin, Arif; Rabadi, Ghaith

2011-01-01

The Aerial Refueling Scheduling Problem (ARSP) can be defined as determining the refueling completion times for each fighter aircraft (job) on multiple tankers (machines). ARSP assumes that jobs have different release times and due dates, The total weighted tardiness is used to evaluate schedule's quality. Therefore, ARSP can be modeled as a parallel machine scheduling with release limes and due dates to minimize the total weighted tardiness. Since ARSP is NP-hard, it will be more appropriate to develop a pproimate or heuristic algorithm to obtain solutions in reasonable computation limes. In this paper, Meta-Raps-ATC algorithm is implemented to create high quality solutions. Meta-RaPS (Meta-heuristic for Randomized Priority Search) is a recent and promising meta heuristic that is applied by introducing randomness to a construction heuristic. The Apparent Tardiness Rule (ATC), which is a good rule for scheduling problems with tardiness objective, is used to construct initial solutions which are improved by an exchanging operation. Results are presented for generated instances.

Accelerating an Ordered-Subset Low-Dose X-Ray Cone Beam Computed Tomography Image Reconstruction with a Power Factor and Total Variation Minimization

PubMed Central

Huang, Hsuan-Ming; Hsiao, Ing-Tsung

2016-01-01

In recent years, there has been increased interest in low-dose X-ray cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) in many fields, including dentistry, guided radiotherapy and small animal imaging. Despite reducing the radiation dose, low-dose CBCT has not gained widespread acceptance in routine clinical practice. In addition to performing more evaluation studies, developing a fast and high-quality reconstruction algorithm is required. In this work, we propose an iterative reconstruction method that accelerates ordered-subsets (OS) reconstruction using a power factor. Furthermore, we combine it with the total-variation (TV) minimization method. Both simulation and phantom studies were conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Results show that the proposed method can accelerate conventional OS methods, greatly increase the convergence speed in early iterations. Moreover, applying the TV minimization to the power acceleration scheme can further improve the image quality while preserving the fast convergence rate. PMID:27073853

Total Quality Management Implementation Plan: Defense Depot, Ogden

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

NUMBERS Total Quality Management Implementation Plan Defense Depot Ogden 6. AUTHOR(S) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING...PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement, Depot Operations, Process Action Teams 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY...034 A Message From The Commander On Total Quality Management i fully support the DLA aoproacii to Total Quality Management . As stated by General

A Program to Improve the Triangulated Surface Mesh Quality Along Aircraft Component Intersections

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cliff, Susan E.

2005-01-01

A computer program has been developed for improving the quality of unstructured triangulated surface meshes in the vicinity of component intersections. The method relies solely on point removal and edge swapping for improving the triangulations. It can be applied to any lifting surface component such as a wing, canard or horizontal tail component intersected with a fuselage, or it can be applied to a pylon that is intersected with a wing, fuselage or nacelle. The lifting surfaces or pylon are assumed to be aligned in the axial direction with closed trailing edges. The method currently maintains salient edges only at leading and trailing edges of the wing or pylon component. This method should work well for any shape of fuselage that is free of salient edges at the intersection. The method has been successfully demonstrated on a total of 125 different test cases that include both blunt and sharp wing leading edges. The code is targeted for use in the automated environment of numerical optimization where geometric perturbations to individual components can be critical to the aerodynamic performance of a vehicle. Histograms of triangle aspect ratios are reported to assess the quality of the triangles attached to the intersection curves before and after application of the program. Large improvements to the quality of the triangulations were obtained for the 125 test cases; the quality was sufficient for use with an automated tetrahedral mesh generation program that is used as part of an aerodynamic shape optimization method.

A multiparametric automatic method to monitor long-term reproducibility in digital mammography: results from a regional screening programme.

PubMed

Gennaro, G; Ballaminut, A; Contento, G

2017-09-01

This study aims to illustrate a multiparametric automatic method for monitoring long-term reproducibility of digital mammography systems, and its application on a large scale. Twenty-five digital mammography systems employed within a regional screening programme were controlled weekly using the same type of phantom, whose images were analysed by an automatic software tool. To assess system reproducibility levels, 15 image quality indices (IQIs) were extracted and compared with the corresponding indices previously determined by a baseline procedure. The coefficients of variation (COVs) of the IQIs were used to assess the overall variability. A total of 2553 phantom images were collected from the 25 digital mammography systems from March 2013 to December 2014. Most of the systems showed excellent image quality reproducibility over the surveillance interval, with mean variability below 5%. Variability of each IQI was 5%, with the exception of one index associated with the smallest phantom objects (0.25 mm), which was below 10%. The method applied for reproducibility tests-multi-detail phantoms, cloud automatic software tool to measure multiple image quality indices and statistical process control-was proven to be effective and applicable on a large scale and to any type of digital mammography system. • Reproducibility of mammography image quality should be monitored by appropriate quality controls. • Use of automatic software tools allows image quality evaluation by multiple indices. • System reproducibility can be assessed comparing current index value with baseline data. • Overall system reproducibility of modern digital mammography systems is excellent. • The method proposed and applied is cost-effective and easily scalable.

Quality of reporting of systematic reviews published in “evidence-based” Chinese journals

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background The number of systematic reviews (SRs)/meta-analyses (MAs) has increased dramatically in China over the past decades. However, evaluation of quality of reporting of systematic reviews published has not been undertaken. The objective of this study is to evaluate the quality of reporting of SRs/MAs assessing efficacy and/or harms of clinical interventions published in “evidence-based” Chinese journals. Methods Web-based database searches were conducted for the Chinese Journal of Evidence-based Medicine, the Journal of Evidence-Based Medicine, the Chinese Journal of Evidence Based Pediatrics, and the Chinese Journal of Evidence-Based Cardiovascular Medicine. SRs/MAs assessing efficacy and/or harms of clinical interventions were included. The cut-off was December 31st 2011. The PRISMA statement was applied to assess the quality of reporting. Each item was assessed as follows: ‘Yes’ for total compliance, scored ‘1’; ‘partial’ for partial compliance, scored ‘0.5’; and ‘No’ for non-compliance, scored ‘0’. The review was considered to have major flaws if it received a total score of ≤15.0, minor flaws if it received a total score of 15.5 to 21.0, and minimal flaws if it received a total score 21.5 to 27.0. Odds ratios were used for binary variables, and the mean difference was used for continuous variables. Analyses were performed using RevMan 5.0 software. Results Overall, 487 SRs/MAs were identified and assessed. The included reviews had medium quality with minor flaws based on PRISMA total scores (range: 8.5–26.0; mean: 19.6 ± 3.3). The stratified analysis showed that SRs/MAs with more than 3 authors, from a university, hospital + university cooperation, multiple affiliations (≥2), and funding have significantly higher quality of reporting of SRs/MAs; 58% of the included reviews were considered to have minor flaws (total score of 15.6 to 21.0). Only 9.6% of reviews were considered to have major flaws. Specific areas needing improvement in reporting include the abstract, protocol and registration, and characteristics of the search. Conclusions The reporting of SRs published in “evidence-based” Chinese journals is poor and needs to be improved in order for reviews to be useful. SR authors should use the PRISMA checklist to ensure complete and accurate accounts of their SRs. PMID:24906805

New prospects of VESUVIO applied to measurements in water mixtures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodríguez Palomino, L. A.; Dawidowski, J.; Blostein, J. J.; Cuello, G. J.

2014-12-01

We present new measurements on mixtures of light and heavy water in the spectrometer VESUVIO (Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, UK), and analyze them from the perspective of different kind of applications. We perform a single detector analysis and show the multiple scattering and attenuation corrections with the aim to employ them in mass- spectrometry. We also show the capabilities to perform transmission measurements to determine total cross sections of an acceptable quality by means of its transmission monitor.

Applying the Combinatorial Retention Auction Mechanism (CRAM) to a Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Post 9/11 Era GI Bill Transferability Benefit

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-06-01

impacts, services have to exert more pressure on the recruiting market and boost Selective Reenlistment Bonuses (SRB) for individuals in critically ...which are used as incentives to recruit high quality recruits into critically undermanned occupations. 11 12 Credit hours per semester. 9  Total...perception about their own personal educational opportunities seems critical . The challenge at this point is to quantify how much transferring a

Effect of nutrient-based fertilisers of olive trees on olive oil quality.

PubMed

Tekaya, Meriem; Mechri, Beligh; Bchir, Amani; Attia, Faouzi; Cheheb, Hechmi; Daassa, Mohamed; Hammami, Mohamed

2013-06-01

This work was conducted to determine the effects of two nutrient-based fertilisers on the general physicochemical characteristics (including free fatty acid content, peroxide value and UV spectrophotometric characteristics), fatty acid profile, total phenols, o-diphenols and phytosterol composition of olive oil. Foliar applications were carried out in two successive years and included four treatments: TC (control, without foliar nutrition), T1 (rich in nitrogen, applied at the start of vegetation, 10 days later and 20 days later), T2 (rich in boron, magnesium, sulfur and manganese, applied at the beginning of flowering and 10 days later) and T3 (T1+T2). At the end of the experiment (after 2 years), oils were extracted and analysed. No effect was found on either general physicochemical characteristics or fatty acid composition. Foliar fertilisation caused a significant decrease in both polyphenol and o-diphenol contents. Total sterol content was unaffected by foliar fertilisation. However, the phytosterol composition of the oil, particularly its β-sitosterol level, was markedly improved after foliar nutrient application. Principal component analysis of the phytosterol composition showed discrimination between the control oil and the oils from T1, T2 and T3 treatments. The results of this study extend the current knowledge of such cross-talk between plant nutrition and quality of oil. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

Characterizing Methane Emissions at Local Scales with a 20 Year Total Hydrocarbon Time Series, Imaging Spectrometry, and Web Facilitated Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bradley, Eliza Swan

Methane is an important greenhouse gas for which uncertainty in local emission strengths necessitates improved source characterizations. Although CH4 plume mapping did not motivate the NASA Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) design and municipal air quality monitoring stations were not intended for studying marine geological seepage, these assets have capabilities that can make them viable for studying concentrated (high flux, highly heterogeneous) CH4 sources, such as the Coal Oil Point (COP) seep field (˜0.015 Tg CH4 yr-1) offshore Santa Barbara, California. Hourly total hydrocarbon (THC) data, spanning 1990 to 2008 from an air pollution station located near COP, were analyzed and showed geologic CH4 emissions as the dominant local source. A band ratio approach was developed and applied to high glint AVIRIS data over COP, resulting in local-scale mapping of natural atmospheric CH4 plumes. A Cluster-Tuned Matched Filter (CTMF) technique was applied to Gulf of Mexico AVIRIS data to detect CH4 venting from offshore platforms. Review of 744 platform-centered CTMF subsets was facilitated through a flexible PHP-based web portal. This dissertation demonstrates the value of investigating municipal air quality data and imaging spectrometry for gathering insight into concentrated methane source emissions and highlights how flexible web-based solutions can help facilitate remote sensing research.

Data assimilation of GNSS zenith total delays from a Nordic processing centre

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindskog, Magnus; Ridal, Martin; Thorsteinsson, Sigurdur; Ning, Tong

2017-11-01

Atmospheric moisture-related information estimated from Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) ground-based receiver stations by the Nordic GNSS Analysis Centre (NGAA) have been used within a state-of-the-art kilometre-scale numerical weather prediction system. Different processing techniques have been implemented to derive the moisture-related GNSS information in the form of zenith total delays (ZTDs) and these are described and compared. In addition full-scale data assimilation and modelling experiments have been carried out to investigate the impact of utilizing moisture-related GNSS data from the NGAA processing centre on a numerical weather prediction (NWP) model initial state and on the ensuing forecast quality. The sensitivity of results to aspects of the data processing, station density, bias-correction and data assimilation have been investigated. Results show benefits to forecast quality when using GNSS ZTD as an additional observation type. The results also show a sensitivity to thinning distance applied for GNSS ZTD observations but not to modifications to the number of predictors used in the variational bias correction applied. In addition, it is demonstrated that the assimilation of GNSS ZTD can benefit from more general data assimilation enhancements and that there is an interaction of GNSS ZTD with other types of observations used in the data assimilation. Future plans include further investigation of optimal thinning distances and application of more advanced data assimilation techniques.

The Diet Quality of Competitive Adolescent Male Rugby Union Players with Energy Balance Estimated Using Different Physical Activity Coefficients

PubMed Central

Burrows, Tracy; Harries, Simon K.; Williams, Rebecca L.; Lum, Cheryl; Callister, Robin

2016-01-01

Objectives: The aims of the current study were to comprehensively assess the dietary intakes and diet quality of a sample of Australian competitive adolescent rugby union players and compare these intakes with National and Sports Dietitians Association (SDA) Recommendations for adolescent athletes. A secondary aim investigated applying different physical activity level (PAL) coefficients to determine total energy expenditure (TEE) in order to more effectively evaluate the adequacy of energy intakes. Design: Cross-sectional. Methods: Anthropometrics and dietary intakes were assessed in 25 competitive adolescent male rugby union players (14 to 18 years old). Diet was assessed using the validated Australian Eating Survey (AES) food frequency questionnaire and diet quality was assessed through the Australian Recommended Food Score. Results: The median dietary intakes of participants met national recommendations for percent energy (% E) from carbohydrate, protein and total fat, but not carbohydrate intake when evaluated as g/day as proposed in SDA guidelines. Median intakes of fibre and micronutrients including calcium and iron also met national recommendations. Overall diet quality was classified as ‘good’ with a median diet quality score of 34 (out of a possible 73); however, there was a lack of variety within key food groups including carbohydrates and proteins. Non-core food consumption exceeded recommended levels at 38% of the daily total energy intake, with substantial contributions from takeaway foods and sweetened beverages. A PAL coefficient of 1.2–1.4 was found to best balance the energy intakes of these players in their pre-season. Conclusions: Adolescent rugby players met the percent energy recommendations for macronutrients and attained an overall ‘good’ diet quality score. However, it was identified that when compared to specific recommendations for athletes, carbohydrate intakes were below recommendations and these players in their pre-season reported high consumption of non-core foods, particularly sugar sweetened drinks and low intakes of vegetables. PMID:27618089

The Diet Quality of Competitive Adolescent Male Rugby Union Players with Energy Balance Estimated Using Different Physical Activity Coefficients.

PubMed

Burrows, Tracy; Harries, Simon K; Williams, Rebecca L; Lum, Cheryl; Callister, Robin

2016-09-07

The aims of the current study were to comprehensively assess the dietary intakes and diet quality of a sample of Australian competitive adolescent rugby union players and compare these intakes with National and Sports Dietitians Association (SDA) Recommendations for adolescent athletes. A secondary aim investigated applying different physical activity level (PAL) coefficients to determine total energy expenditure (TEE) in order to more effectively evaluate the adequacy of energy intakes. Cross-sectional. Anthropometrics and dietary intakes were assessed in 25 competitive adolescent male rugby union players (14 to 18 years old). Diet was assessed using the validated Australian Eating Survey (AES) food frequency questionnaire and diet quality was assessed through the Australian Recommended Food Score. The median dietary intakes of participants met national recommendations for percent energy (% E) from carbohydrate, protein and total fat, but not carbohydrate intake when evaluated as g/day as proposed in SDA guidelines. Median intakes of fibre and micronutrients including calcium and iron also met national recommendations. Overall diet quality was classified as 'good' with a median diet quality score of 34 (out of a possible 73); however, there was a lack of variety within key food groups including carbohydrates and proteins. Non-core food consumption exceeded recommended levels at 38% of the daily total energy intake, with substantial contributions from takeaway foods and sweetened beverages. A PAL coefficient of 1.2-1.4 was found to best balance the energy intakes of these players in their pre-season. Adolescent rugby players met the percent energy recommendations for macronutrients and attained an overall 'good' diet quality score. However, it was identified that when compared to specific recommendations for athletes, carbohydrate intakes were below recommendations and these players in their pre-season reported high consumption of non-core foods, particularly sugar sweetened drinks and low intakes of vegetables.

Motivating medical information system performance by system quality, service quality, and job satisfaction for evidence-based practice

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background No previous studies have addressed the integrated relationships among system quality, service quality, job satisfaction, and system performance; this study attempts to bridge such a gap with evidence-based practice study. Methods The convenience sampling method was applied to the information system users of three hospitals in southern Taiwan. A total of 500 copies of questionnaires were distributed, and 283 returned copies were valid, suggesting a valid response rate of 56.6%. SPSS 17.0 and AMOS 17.0 (structural equation modeling) statistical software packages were used for data analysis and processing. Results The findings are as follows: System quality has a positive influence on service quality (γ11= 0.55), job satisfaction (γ21= 0.32), and system performance (γ31= 0.47). Service quality (β31= 0.38) and job satisfaction (β32= 0.46) will positively influence system performance. Conclusions It is thus recommended that the information office of hospitals and developers take enhancement of service quality and user satisfaction into consideration in addition to placing b on system quality and information quality when designing, developing, or purchasing an information system, in order to improve benefits and gain more achievements generated by hospital information systems. PMID:23171394

Quality Improvement in Acute Ischemic Stroke Care in Taiwan: The Breakthrough Collaborative in Stroke

PubMed Central

Chern, Chang-Ming; Lee, Tsong-Hai; Tang, Sung-Chun; Tsai, Li-Kai; Liao, Hsun-Hsiang; Chang, Hang; LaBresh, Kenneth A.; Lin, Hung-Jung; Chiou, Hung-Yi; Chiu, Hou-Chang; Lien, Li-Ming

2016-01-01

In the management of acute ischemic stroke, guideline adherence is often suboptimal, particularly for intravenous thrombolysis or anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation. We sought to improve stroke care quality via a collaborative model, the Breakthrough Series (BTS)-Stroke activity, in a nationwide, multi-center activity in Taiwan. A BTS Collaborative, a short-term learning system for a large number of multidisciplinary teams from hospitals, was applied to enhance acute ischemic stroke care quality. Twenty-four hospitals participated in and submitted data for this stroke quality improvement campaign in 2010–2011. Totally, 14 stroke quality measures, adopted from the Get With The Guideline (GWTG)-Stroke program, were used to evaluate the performance and outcome of the ischemic stroke patients. Data for a one-year period from 24 hospitals with 13,181 acute ischemic stroke patients were analyzed. In 14 hospitals, most stroke quality measures improved significantly during the BTS-activity compared with a pre-BTS-Stroke activity period (2006–08). The rate of intravenous thrombolysis increased from 1.2% to 4.6%, door-to-needle time ≤60 minutes improved from 7.1% to 50.8%, symptomatic hemorrhage after intravenous thrombolysis decreased from 11.0% to 5.6%, and anticoagulation therapy for atrial fibrillation increased from 32.1% to 64.1%. The yearly composite measures of five stroke quality measures revealed significant improvements from 2006 to 2011 (75% to 86.3%, p<0.001). The quarterly composite measures also improved significantly during the BTS-Stroke activity. In conclusion, a BTS collaborative model is associated with improved guideline adherence for patients with acute ischemic stroke. GWTG-Stroke recommendations can be successfully applied in countries besides the United States. PMID:27487190

Quality Improvement in Acute Ischemic Stroke Care in Taiwan: The Breakthrough Collaborative in Stroke.

PubMed

Hsieh, Fang-I; Jeng, Jiann-Shing; Chern, Chang-Ming; Lee, Tsong-Hai; Tang, Sung-Chun; Tsai, Li-Kai; Liao, Hsun-Hsiang; Chang, Hang; LaBresh, Kenneth A; Lin, Hung-Jung; Chiou, Hung-Yi; Chiu, Hou-Chang; Lien, Li-Ming

2016-01-01

In the management of acute ischemic stroke, guideline adherence is often suboptimal, particularly for intravenous thrombolysis or anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation. We sought to improve stroke care quality via a collaborative model, the Breakthrough Series (BTS)-Stroke activity, in a nationwide, multi-center activity in Taiwan. A BTS Collaborative, a short-term learning system for a large number of multidisciplinary teams from hospitals, was applied to enhance acute ischemic stroke care quality. Twenty-four hospitals participated in and submitted data for this stroke quality improvement campaign in 2010-2011. Totally, 14 stroke quality measures, adopted from the Get With The Guideline (GWTG)-Stroke program, were used to evaluate the performance and outcome of the ischemic stroke patients. Data for a one-year period from 24 hospitals with 13,181 acute ischemic stroke patients were analyzed. In 14 hospitals, most stroke quality measures improved significantly during the BTS-activity compared with a pre-BTS-Stroke activity period (2006-08). The rate of intravenous thrombolysis increased from 1.2% to 4.6%, door-to-needle time ≤60 minutes improved from 7.1% to 50.8%, symptomatic hemorrhage after intravenous thrombolysis decreased from 11.0% to 5.6%, and anticoagulation therapy for atrial fibrillation increased from 32.1% to 64.1%. The yearly composite measures of five stroke quality measures revealed significant improvements from 2006 to 2011 (75% to 86.3%, p<0.001). The quarterly composite measures also improved significantly during the BTS-Stroke activity. In conclusion, a BTS collaborative model is associated with improved guideline adherence for patients with acute ischemic stroke. GWTG-Stroke recommendations can be successfully applied in countries besides the United States.

Application Of A Potentiometric Electronic Tongue For The Determination Of Free SO2 And Other Analytical Parameters In White Wines From New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mednova, Olga; Kirsanov, Dmitry; Rudnitskaya, Alisa; Kilmartin, Paul; Legin, Andrey

2009-05-01

The present study deals with a potentiometric electronic tongue (ET) multisensor system applied for the simultaneous determination of several chemical parameters for white wines produced in New Zealand. Methods in use for wine quality control are often expensive and require considerable time and skilled operation. The ET approach usually offers a simple and fast measurement protocol and allows automation for on-line analysis under industrial conditions. The ET device developed in this research is capable of quantifying the free and total SO2 content, total acids and some polyphenolic compounds in white wines with acceptable analytical errors.

Application of chemometric methods for assessment and modelling of microbiological quality data concerning coastal bathing water in Greece.

PubMed

Papaioannou, Agelos; Rigas, George; Papastergiou, Panagiotis; Hadjichristodoulou, Christos

2014-12-02

Worldwide, the aim of managing water is to safeguard human health whilst maintaining sustainable aquatic and associated terrestrial, ecosystems. Because human enteric viruses are the most likely pathogens responsible for waterborne diseases from recreational water use, but detection methods are complex and costly for routine monitoring, it is of great interest to determine the quality of coastal bathing water with a minimum cost and maximum safety. This study handles the assessment and modelling of the microbiological quality data of 2149 seawater bathing areas in Greece over 10-year period (1997-2006) by chemometric methods. Cluster analysis results indicated that the studied bathing beaches are classified in accordance with the seasonality in three groups. Factor analysis was applied to investigate possible determining factors in the groups resulted from the cluster analysis, and also two new parameters were created in each group; VF1 includes E. coli, faecal coliforms and total coliforms and VF2 includes faecal streptococci/enterococci. By applying the cluster analysis in each seasonal group, three new groups of coasts were generated, group A (ultraclean), group B (clean) and group C (contaminated). The above analysis is confirmed by the application of discriminant analysis, and proves that chemometric methods are useful tools for assessment and modeling microbiological quality data of coastal bathing water on a large scale, and thus could attribute to effective and economical monitoring of the quality of coastal bathing water in a country with a big number of bathing coasts, like Greece. Significance for public healthThe microbiological protection of coastal bathing water quality is of great interest for the public health authorities as well as for the economy. The present study proves that this protection can be achieved by monitoring only two microbiological parameters, E. coli and faecal streptococci/enterococci instead four microbiological parameters (the two mentioned above plus Total coliforms and Faecal coliforms) that are usually monitored today. As a consequence, countries, especially those with large quantities of coastal bathing sites, can perform microbiological monitoring of their bathing waters by checking only the mentioned two parameters, thus ensuring economies of scale. Thus, funds can be used in other actions to preserve the quality of coastal water and human health. This in turn, would aid in the assessment of the quality of coastal bathing waters and provide a more timely indication of bathing water quality, hence contributing to the immediate health protection of bathers.

Monitoring and assessment of the groundwater quality in wadi Al-Arish downstream area, North Sinai (Egypt)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masoud, Alaa A.; Meswara, Ebtesam A.; El Bouraie, Mohamed M.; Kamh, Samir Z.

2018-04-01

At a rate of 3 samples a year over 7 years (2008-2014), groundwater quality indicators for 294 samples from 14 groundwater supply wells located on the delta of Wadi Al-Arish, North Sinai (Egypt) were measured and analyzed. The prime objective was to characterize significant and sustained trends in the concentrations of the pH, TDS, Total Alkalinity, Fe2+, Mn2+, Zn2+, NO3-, K+, Pb2+, Al3+, and fecal coliform (FC). Detection and estimation of trends and magnitude were carried out applying the nonparametric Mann-Kendall and Thiel-Sen trend statistical tests, respectively. Geostatistical kriging implemented in ArcGIS 10× was appraised for the spatial distribution of the indicators and their sustained trends. Factor analysis was applied to identify significant sources of quality variation and their loads. Average contents of all indicators exceeded the permissible limits except for Mn. Violation of groundwater quality standards clarified emergence of FC (99.6%), Pb2+ (76.8%), TDS (60.2%), Al3+ (56.6%), NO3- (46.5%), Fe2+ (37.5%), and Mn2+ (14%). Out of the 14 wells, notable upward trends (deterioration) were significant (>95% level) for Mg2+ (100%), TDS (78.5%), NO3- (71.42%), Zn2+ (42.85%), pH (14.28%), K+ (14.28%), and 7.14% for Al3+ and FC. Ranges of attenuation rates (mg/l/year) varied for TDS (52.61-37.59), Mg2+ hardness (3.81-0.14), K+ (0.58-1), pH (0.004-0.027), total alkalinity (-1.89-13.18), NO3- (1.47-0.69), Al3+ (0.002-0.011), Fe2+ (-0.001-0.016), Mn2+ (-0.00004-0.01), Pb2+ (-0.00001-0.002), Zn2+ (0.049-0.018), and FC (5.25-22) in cfu/100 ml. Out of the 14 wells, well no. 9 showed the largest increasing attenuation rates (mg/l/year) that marked NO3- (1.47), K+ (0.58), pH (0.004), and Al3+ (0.002). TDS showed the largest rates of increase of 52.61, and 28.26 for well nos. 5 and 9, respectively. FC showed the highest rate of deterioration of 5.25 in well no. 10. Zn2+ recorded strong deterioration rates of 0.049, and 0.046 for well nos. 12 and 9, respectively. Four factors were found to explain 60.48% of the total variance of the quality variables and in particular, a significant load of TDS, Cl-, EC, SO42-, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, NO3-, K+, Pb2+ and Total Alkalinity in decreasing order of influence were identified. Variation in quality parameters originated from anthropogenic sources due to improper well head protection in the urban centers or from the agricultural wastes and the flash floodwater stagnation and intense evaporation in low relief areas.

Assessment of phytoplankton and environmental variables for water quality and trophic state classification in the Gemlik Gulf, Marmara Sea (Turkey).

PubMed

Balci, Muharrem; Balkis, Neslihan

2017-02-15

Phytoplankton assemblages related to environmental factors and ecological status of the Gemlik Gulf were investigated between June 2010 and May 2011. A total 155 phytoplankton species were detected and 6 taxa (Amphisolenia laticincta, Archaeperidinium minutum, Cochlodinium sp., Gynogonadinium aequatoriale, Heterocapsa rotundata and Metaphalacroma sp.) were new records for the Turkish Seas. The lowest and highest total phytoplankton abundance among the sampling units (depths) was recorded in April 2011 (7.4×10 3 cellsL -1 ) and July 2010 (251.8×10 3 cellsL -1 ). Local small patches of visible red tide events were detected especially in the gulf, although a phytoplankton bloom was not observed. The water column was well stratified in the early autumn and well mixed in the early spring according to stratification index values. Surface nutrient concentrations increased especially at stations located inside of the gulf. The limiting effect of silicate was observed in early, mid-summer and early winter periods while the nitrogen was the limiting nutrient in the gulf during the whole sampling period. In the Gulf, low water quality-high mesotrophic and bad water quality-eutrophic status, high quality and low trophic level were generally detected according to Chl a, dissolved oxygen and trophic index. However, indices developed to determine the trophic level and water quality of the Mediterranean Sea can give unexpected results about the current environmental quality status when it is applied to the Marmara Sea which has limited photic zone by the halocline-pycnocline and thermocline. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neuropsychological and quality of life assessment in patients with Parkinson's disease submitted to bilateral deep brain stimulation in the subthalamic nucleus

PubMed Central

Heluani, Alessandra Shenandoa; Porto, Fábio Henrique de Gobbi; Listik, Sergio; de Campos, Alexandre Walter; Machado, Alexandre Aluizio Costa; Cukiert, Arthur; de Oliveira Jr, José Oswaldo

2012-01-01

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been widely used to control motor symptoms and improve quality of life in patients with Parkinsons disease (PD). Recently, DBS in the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has become the preferred target for patients with mixed motor symptoms. Despite resultant motor and quality of life improvements, the procedure has been associated with cognitive decline, mainly in language skills, and also with psychiatric symptoms. Objective To evaluate the influence of DBS in the STN on cognition, mood and quality of life. Methods We studied 20 patients with PD submitted to DBS in the STN from May 2008 to June 2012 with an extensive battery of cognitive tests including memory, language, praxis, executive functions and attention assessments; the Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (PDQ-39); and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD), were applied both before and after the surgery. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 17.0 and results compared using the paired Student's t test. Results A total of 20 patients with pre and post-operative assessments were included. A statistically significant improvement was found in total score and on subscales of mobility, activities of daily living and emotional well-being from the PDQ-39 (P=0.009, 0.025, 0.001 and 0.034, respectively). No significant difference was found on the cognitive battery or mood scale. Conclusion DBS in the SNT improved quality of life in PD with no negative impact on cognitive skills and mood. PMID:29213806

Measuring the quality of therapeutic apheresis care in the pediatric intensive care unit.

PubMed

Sussmane, Jeffrey B; Torbati, Dan; Gitlow, Howard S

2012-01-01

Our goal was to measure the quality of care provided in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) during Therapeutic Apheresis (TA). We described the care as a step by step process. We designed a flow chart to carefully document each step of the process. We then defined each step with a unique clinical indictor (CI) that represented the exact task we felt provided quality care. These CIs were studied and modified for 1 year. We measured our performance in this process by the number of times we accomplished the CI vs. the total number of CIs that were to be performed. The degree of compliance, with these clinical indicators, was analyzed and used as a metric for quality by calculating how close the process is running exactly as planned or "in control." The Apheresis Process was in control (compliance) for 47% of the indicators, as measured in the aggregate for the first observational year. We then applied the theory of Total Quality Management (TQM) through our Design, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC) model. We were able to improve the process and bring it into control by increasing the compliance to > 99.74%, in the aggregate, for the third and fourth quarter of the second year. We have implemented TQM to increase compliance, thus control, of a highly complex and multidisciplinary Pediatric Intensive Care therapy. We have shown a reproducible and scalable measure of quality for a complex clinical process in the PICU, without additional capital expenditure. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

A cost-efficiency and health benefit approach to improve urban air quality.

PubMed

Miranda, A I; Ferreira, J; Silveira, C; Relvas, H; Duque, L; Roebeling, P; Lopes, M; Costa, S; Monteiro, A; Gama, C; Sá, E; Borrego, C; Teixeira, J P

2016-11-01

When ambient air quality standards established in the EU Directive 2008/50/EC are exceeded, Member States are obliged to develop and implement Air Quality Plans (AQP) to improve air quality and health. Notwithstanding the achievements in emission reductions and air quality improvement, additional efforts need to be undertaken to improve air quality in a sustainable way - i.e. through a cost-efficiency approach. This work was developed in the scope of the recently concluded MAPLIA project "Moving from Air Pollution to Local Integrated Assessment", and focuses on the definition and assessment of emission abatement measures and their associated costs, air quality and health impacts and benefits by means of air quality modelling tools, health impact functions and cost-efficiency analysis. The MAPLIA system was applied to the Grande Porto urban area (Portugal), addressing PM10 and NOx as the most important pollutants in the region. Four different measures to reduce PM10 and NOx emissions were defined and characterized in terms of emissions and implementation costs, and combined into 15 emission scenarios, simulated by the TAPM air quality modelling tool. Air pollutant concentration fields were then used to estimate health benefits in terms of avoided costs (external costs), using dose-response health impact functions. Results revealed that, among the 15 scenarios analysed, the scenario including all 4 measures lead to a total net benefit of 0.3M€·y(-1). The largest net benefit is obtained for the scenario considering the conversion of 50% of open fire places into heat recovery wood stoves. Although the implementation costs of this measure are high, the benefits outweigh the costs. Research outcomes confirm that the MAPLIA system is useful for policy decision support on air quality improvement strategies, and could be applied to other urban areas where AQP need to be implemented and monitored. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Examining water quality effects of riparian wetland loss and restoration scenarios in a southern ontario watershed.

PubMed

Yang, Wanhong; Liu, Yongbo; Ou, Chunping; Gabor, Shane

2016-06-01

Wetland conservation has two important tasks: The first is to halt wetland loss and the second is to conduct wetland restoration. In order to facilitate these tasks, it is important to understand the environmental degradation from wetland loss and the environmental benefits from wetland restoration. The purpose of the study is to develop SWAT based wetland modelling to examine water quality effects of riparian wetland loss and restoration scenarios in the 323-km(2) Black River watershed in southern Ontario, Canada. The SWAT based wetland modelling was set up, calibrated and validated to fit into watershed conditions. The modelling was then applied to evaluate various scenarios of wetland loss from existing 7590 ha of riparian wetlands (baseline scenario) to 100% loss, and wetland restoration up to the year 1800 condition with 11,237 ha of riparian wetlands (100% restoration). The modelling was further applied to examine 100% riparian wetland loss and restoration in three subareas of the watershed to understand spatial pattern of water quality effects. Modelling results show that in comparing to baseline condition, the sediment, total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) loadings increase by 251.0%, 260.5%, and 890.9% respectively for 100% riparian wetland loss, and decrease by 34.5%, 28.3%, and 37.0% respectively for 100% riparian wetland restoration. Modelling results also show that as riparian wetland loss increases, the corresponding environmental degradation worsens at accelerated rates. In contrast, as riparian wetland restoration increases, the environmental benefits improve but at decelerated rates. Particularly, the water quality effects of riparian wetland loss or restoration show considerable spatial variations. The watershed wetland modelling contributes to inform decisions on riparian wetland conservation or restoration at different rates. The results further demonstrate the importance of targeting priority areas for stopping riparian wetland loss and initiating riparian wetland restoration based on scientific understanding of watershed wetland effects. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

DLA-X Total Quality Management (TQM) Implementation Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

PAGES TOM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement.( .) 4L-- Administration 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18. SECURITY...NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Pr.-cr,bed by ANSI Std ,,fl.f 296-102 DLA-X TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN o...application of proven Total Quality Management techniques. Quality Policy: Responsibility for quality is delegated to every employee ;11 DLA-X. Every

Quantitative phosphoproteomic analysis of caprine muscle with high and low meat quality.

PubMed

Liu, Manshun; Wei, Yanchao; Li, Xin; Quek, Siew Young; Zhao, Jing; Zhong, Huazhen; Zhang, Dequan; Liu, Yongfeng

2018-07-01

During the conversion of muscle to meat, protein phosphorylation can regulate various biological processes that have important effects on meat quality. To investigate the phosphorylation pattern of protein on rigor mortis, goat longissimus thoracis and external intercostals were classified into two groups (high quality and low quality), and meat quality was evaluated according to meat quality attributes (Warner-Bratzler shear force, Color, pH and drip loss). A quantitative mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomic study was conducted to analyze the caprine muscle at 12h postmortem applying the TiO 2 -SIMAC-HILIC (TiSH) phosphopeptide enrichment strategy. A total of 2125 phosphopeptides were identified from 750 phosphoproteins. Among them, 96 proteins had differed in phosphorylation levels. The majority of these proteins are involved in glucose metabolism and muscle contraction. The differential phosphorylation level of proteins (PFK, MYL2 and HSP27) in two groups may be the crucial factors of regulating muscle rigor mortis. This study provides a comprehensive view for the phosphorylation status of caprine muscle at rigor mortis, it also gives a better understanding of the regulation of protein phosphorylation on various biological processes that affect the final meat quality attributes. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Influence of water quality on the embodied energy of drinking water treatment.

PubMed

Santana, Mark V E; Zhang, Qiong; Mihelcic, James R

2014-01-01

Urban water treatment plants rely on energy intensive processes to provide safe, reliable water to users. Changes in influent water quality may alter the operation of a water treatment plant and its associated energy use or embodied energy. Therefore the objective of this study is to estimate the effect of influent water quality on the operational embodied energy of drinking water, using the city of Tampa, Florida as a case study. Water quality and water treatment data were obtained from the David L Tippin Water Treatment Facility (Tippin WTF). Life cycle energy analysis (LCEA) was conducted to calculate treatment chemical embodied energy values. Statistical methods including Pearson's correlation, linear regression, and relative importance were used to determine the influence of water quality on treatment plant operation and subsequently, embodied energy. Results showed that influent water quality was responsible for about 14.5% of the total operational embodied energy, mainly due to changes in treatment chemical dosages. The method used in this study can be applied to other urban drinking water contexts to determine if drinking water source quality control or modification of treatment processes will significantly minimize drinking water treatment embodied energy.

Determinants of quality management systems implementation in hospitals.

PubMed

Wardhani, Viera; Utarini, Adi; van Dijk, Jitse Pieter; Post, Doeke; Groothoff, Johan Willem

2009-03-01

To identify the problems and facilitating factors in the implementation of quality management system (QMS) in hospitals through a systematic review. A search strategy was performed on the Medline database for articles written in English published between 1992 and early 2006. Using the thesaurus terms 'Total Quality Management' and 'Quality Assurance Health Care', combined with the term 'hospital' and 'implement*', we identified 533 publications. The screening process was based on empirical articles describing organization-wide QMS implementation. Fourteen empirical articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were reviewed in this paper. An organization culture emphasizing standards and values associated with affiliation, teamwork and innovation, assumption of change and risk taking, play as the key success factor in QMS implementation. This culture needs to be supported by sufficient technical competence to apply a scientific problem-solving approach. A clear distribution of QMS function within the organizational structure is more important than establishing a formal quality structure. In addition to management leadership, physician involvement also plays an important role in implementing QMS. Six supporting and limiting factors determining QMS implementation are identified in this review. These are the organization culture, design, leadership for quality, physician involvement, quality structure and technical competence.

What affects the subjective sleep quality of hospitalized elderly patients?

PubMed

Park, Mi Jeong; Kim, Kon Hee

2017-03-01

The present study aimed to identify the factors affecting the subjective sleep quality in elderly inpatients. The participants were 290 older adults admitted in three general hospitals. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire consisting of scales for general characteristics, sleep quality, activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living and depression. Collected data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test, one-way anova, Scheffé post-hoc, Pearson's correlation coefficient and stepwise multiple regression. There were statistically significant differences in sleep quality according to age, education level, marital status, monthly income and number of cohabitants. The most powerful predictor of sleep quality was depression (P < 0.01, R 2  = 0.30). Five variables, depression, perceived health status, diagnosis, number of cohabitants and duration of hospitalization; explained 43.0% of the total variance in sleep quality. Elderly inpatients suffered from low sleep quality, and depression affected their sleep. We should develop and apply hospital-tailored sleep interventions considering older adults' depression, and then hospitalized older adults' sleep could improve. Furthermore, it is useful to identify other sleep-related factors. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 471-479. © 2016 Japan Geriatrics Society.

Measuring and modelling the quality of 40 post-disaster mental health and psychosocial support programmes.

PubMed

Dückers, Michel L A; Thormar, Sigridur B; Juen, Barbara; Ajdukovic, Dean; Newlove-Eriksson, Lindy; Olff, Miranda

2018-01-01

Disasters can have an enormous impact on the health and well-being of those affected. Internationally, governments and service providers are often challenged to address complex psychosocial problems. Ideally, the potentially broad range of support activities include a coherent, high-quality mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) programme. We present a theory-driven quantitative analysis of the quality of 40 MHPSS programmes, mostly implemented in European disaster settings. The objective is to measure quality domains recognized as relevant in the literature and to empirically test associations. During the EU project "Operationalizing Psychosocial Support in Crisis" (OPSIC) an evaluation survey was designed and developed for this purpose and completed by 40 MHPSS programme coordinators involved in different mass emergencies and disasters. We analysed the survey data in two steps. Firstly, we used the data to operationalize quality domains of a MHPSS programme, tested constructs and assessed their internal consistency reliability. A total of 26 out of 44 survey items clustered into three of the four domains identified within the theoretical framework: "planning and delivery system" (Cronbach's alpha 0.82); "general evaluation criteria" (Cronbach's alpha 0.82); and "essential psychosocial principles" (Cronbach's alpha 0.75). "Measures and interventions applied", theoretically a potential fourth domain, could not be confirmed to empirically cluster together. Secondly, several models with associations between domains and measures and interventions were tested and compared. The model with the best fit suggests that in MHPSS programmes with a higher planning and delivery systems score, a larger number of measures and interventions from evidence-informed guidelines are applied. In such programmes, coordinators are more positive about general evaluation criteria and the realization of essential psychosocial principles. Moreover, the analyses showed that some measures and interventions are more likely to be applied in programmes with more evolved planning and delivery systems, yet for most measures and interventions the likelihood of being applied is not linked to planning and delivery system status, nor to coordinator perceptions concerning psychosocial principles and evaluation criteria. Further research is necessary to validate and expand the findings and to learn more about success factors and obstacles for MHPSS programme implementation.

Retrieval of total suspended matter concentrations from high resolution WorldView-2 imagery: a case study of inland rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Liangliang; Mao, Zhihua; Wang, Zheng

2018-02-01

Satellite imagery has played an important role in monitoring water quality of lakes or coastal waters presently, but scarcely been applied in inland rivers. This paper presents an attempt of feasibility to apply regression model to quantify and map the concentrations of total suspended matter (CTSM) in inland rivers which have a large scale of spatial and a high CTSM dynamic range by using high resolution satellite remote sensing data, WorldView-2. An empirical approach to quantify CTSM by integrated use of high resolution WorldView-2 multispectral data and 21 in situ CTSM measurements. Radiometric correction, geometric and atmospheric correction involved in image processing procedure is carried out for deriving the surface reflectance to correlate the CTSM and satellite data by using single-variable and multivariable regression technique. Results of regression model show that the single near-infrared (NIR) band 8 of WorldView-2 have a relative strong relationship (R2=0.93) with CTSM. Different prediction models were developed on various combinations of WorldView-2 bands, the Akaike Information Criteria approach was used to choose the best model. The model involving band 1, 3, 5, and 8 of WorldView-2 had a best performance, whose R2 reach to 0.92, with SEE of 53.30 g/m3. The spatial distribution maps were produced by using the best multiple regression model. The results of this paper indicated that it is feasible to apply the empirical model by using high resolution satellite imagery to retrieve CTSM of inland rivers in routine monitoring of water quality.

Partial root-zone drying and conventional deficit irrigation applied during the whole berry growth maintain yield and berry quality in 'Crimson Seedless' table grapes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pérez-Pastor, Alejandro; Domingo, Rafael; De la Rosa, Jose M.°; Rosario Conesa Saura, M.°

2016-04-01

To compare the effects of partial root-zone drying and conventional deficit irrigation applied during post-veraison and the whole berry growth on water relations, yield and berry quality, one experiment was conducted in a commercial vineyard of 'Crimson Seedless' table grapes. Five irrigation treatments were imposed: (i) Control (CTL) irrigated to 110% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc), (ii) regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) irrigated at 50% of CTL during the non- critical period of post-verasion, (iii) continuous deficit irrigation (DIc), irrigated at 50% of CTL throughout the whole berry growing season, (iv) partial root-zone drying (PRD), irrigated similar to RDI, but alternating the irrigation applied in the dry side every 10-14 days; and (v) continuous partial root-zone drying (PRDc), irrigated as DIc but alternating the irrigation in the dry side every 10-14 days. RDI and PRD received 24% and 28% less water than CTL, respectively. These reductions were higher in DIc and PRDc (65% and 53%, respectively). Total yield was not affected by any DI strategy. Only significantly lower values were observed in the weight and height's berries in respect to CTL. However, the colour parameters evaluated increased in all DI treatments, being slightly higher in DIc and PRDc compared with RDI and PRD. In addition, total soluble solids (TSS) were significantly higher in DIc, compared to other irrigated counterparts. Our findings showed that the application of water deficit during the whole berry growth through the use of DIc and PRDc, can be considered for irrigation scheduling in 'Crimson Seedless' table grapes. Acknowledgements This work has been funded by the European Union LIFE+ project IRRIMAN (LIFE13 ENV/ES/000539).

Effects of near-surface hydraulic gradients on nitrate and phosphorus losses in surface runoff.

PubMed

Zheng, Fen-Li; Huang, Chi-Hua; Norton, L Darrell

2004-01-01

Phosphorous (P) and nitrogen (N) in runoff from agricultural fields are key components of nonpoint-source pollution and can accelerate eutrophication of surface waters. A laboratory study was designed to evaluate effects of near-surface hydraulic gradients on P and N losses in surface runoff from soil pans at 5% slope under simulated rainfall. Experimental treatments included three rates of fertilizer input (control [no fertilizer input], low [40 kg P ha(-1), 100 kg N ha(-1)], and high [80 kg P ha(-1), 200 kg N ha(-1)]) and four near-surface hydraulic gradients (free drainage [FD], saturation [Sa], artesian seepage without rain [Sp], and artesian seepage with rain [Sp + R]). Simulated rainfall of 50 mm h(-1) was applied for 90 min. The results showed that near-surface hydraulic gradients have dramatic effects on NO(3)-N and PO(4)-P losses and runoff water quality. Under the low fertilizer treatment, the average concentrations in surface runoff from FD, Sa, Sp, and Sp + R were 0.08, 2.20, 529.5, and 71.8 mg L(-1) for NO(3)-N and 0.11, 0.54, 0.91, and 0.72 mg L(-1) for PO(4)-P, respectively. Similar trends were observed for the concentrations of NO(3)-N and PO(4)-P under the high fertilizer treatment. The total NO(3)-N loss under the FD treatment was only 0.01% of the applied nitrogen, while under the Sp and Sp + R treatments, the total NO(3)-N loss was 11 to 16% of the applied nitrogen. These results show that artesian seepage could make a significant contribution to water quality problems.

Quality evaluation of frozen guava and yellow passion fruit pulps by NIR spectroscopy and chemometrics.

PubMed

Alamar, Priscila D; Caramês, Elem T S; Poppi, Ronei J; Pallone, Juliana A L

2016-07-01

The present study investigated the application of near infrared spectroscopy as a green, quick, and efficient alternative to analytical methods currently used to evaluate the quality (moisture, total sugars, acidity, soluble solids, pH and ascorbic acid) of frozen guava and passion fruit pulps. Fifty samples were analyzed by near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) and reference methods. Partial least square regression (PLSR) was used to develop calibration models to relate the NIR spectra and the reference values. Reference methods indicated adulteration by water addition in 58% of guava pulp samples and 44% of yellow passion fruit pulp samples. The PLS models produced lower values of root mean squares error of calibration (RMSEC), root mean squares error of prediction (RMSEP), and coefficient of determination above 0.7. Moisture and total sugars presented the best calibration models (RMSEP of 0.240 and 0.269, respectively, for guava pulp; RMSEP of 0.401 and 0.413, respectively, for passion fruit pulp) which enables the application of these models to determine adulteration in guava and yellow passion fruit pulp by water or sugar addition. The models constructed for calibration of quality parameters of frozen fruit pulps in this study indicate that NIR spectroscopy coupled with the multivariate calibration technique could be applied to determine the quality of guava and yellow passion fruit pulp. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

34 CFR 611.1 - What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality... Education (Continued) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS PROGRAM General Provisions § 611.1 What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement...

34 CFR 611.1 - What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality... Education (Continued) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS PROGRAM General Provisions § 611.1 What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement...

34 CFR 611.1 - What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality... Education (Continued) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS PROGRAM General Provisions § 611.1 What definitions apply to the Teacher Quality Enhancement...

The Effects of a Culturally Tailored, Patient-Centered Psychosocial Intervention in South Korean Cancer Survivors.

PubMed

Kim, Dohun; Chang, Sun Ju; Lee, Hyun Ok; Lee, Seung Hee

2018-01-01

This study aimed to develop a culturally tailored, patient-centered psychosocial intervention program and to investigate the effects of the program on health-related quality of life, sleep disturbance, and depression in cancer survivors. This was a one-group pretest and posttest design. A total of 19 cancer survivors participated in the program. The program was designed to have an 8-week duration with one class per week. Every class was composed of a 90-min education session and a 90-min exercise. Among the health-related quality of life subscales, the scores of global health status/quality of life, physical functioning, and emotional functioning at posttest were statistically increased than those at pretest. Fatigue scores significantly decreased, whereas no changes were observed in sleep disturbance or depression scores. The findings of this study suggested that a culturally tailored, patient-centered psychosocial intervention could be applied in clinical settings to improve health-related quality of life in cancer survivors.

Classification of java tea (Orthosiphon aristatus) quality using FTIR spectroscopy and chemometrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heryanto, R.; Pradono, D. I.; Marlina, E.; Darusman, L. K.

2017-05-01

Java tea (Orthosiphon aristatus) is a plant that widely used as a medicinal herb in Indonesia. Its quality is varying depends on various factors, such as cultivating area, climate and harvesting time. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of FTIR spectroscopy coupled with chemometrics for discriminating the quality of java tea from different cultivating area. FTIR spectra of ethanolic extracts were collected from five different regions of origin of java tea. Prior to chemometrics evaluation, spectra were pre-processed by using baselining, normalization and derivatization. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was used to reduce the spectra to two PCs, which explained 73% of the total variance. Score plot of two PCs showed groupings of the samples according to their regions of origin. Furthermore, Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLSDA) was applied to the pre-processed data. The approach produced an external validation success rate of 100%. This study shows that FTIR analysis and chemometrics has discriminatory power to classify java tea based on its quality related to the region of origin.

Identification of innovative potential quality markers in rocket and melon fresh-cut produce.

PubMed

Cavaiuolo, Marina; Cocetta, Giacomo; Bulgari, Roberta; Spinardi, Anna; Ferrante, Antonio

2015-12-01

Ready-to-eat fresh cut produce are exposed to pre- and postharvest abiotic stresses during the production chain. Our work aimed to identify stress responsive genes as new molecular markers of quality that can be widely applied to leaves and fruits and easily determined at any stage of the production chain. Stress responsive genes associated with quality losses were isolated in rocket and melon fresh-cut produce and their expression levels analyzed by quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) at different time points after harvest at 20 °C and 4 °C. qRT-PCR results were supported by correlation analysis with physiological and biochemical determinations evaluated at the same conditions such as chlorophyll a fluorescence indices, total, reducing sugars, sucrose, ethylene, ascorbic acid, lipid peroxidation and reactive oxygen species. In both species the putative molecular markers increased their expression soon after harvest suggesting a possible use as novel and objective quality markers of fresh-cut produces. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The application of exergy to human-designed systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamilton, P.

2012-12-01

Exergy is the portion of the total energy of a system that is available for conversion to useful work. Exergy takes into account both the quantity and quality of energy. Heat is the inevitable product of using any form of high-quality energy such as electricity. Modern commercial buildings and industrial facilities use large amounts of electricity and so produce huge amounts of heat. This heat energy typically is treated as a waste product and discharged to the environment and then high-quality energy sources are consumed to satisfy low-quality energy heating and cooling needs. Tens of thousands of buildings and even whole communities could meet much of their heating and cooling needs through the capture and reuse of heat energy. Yet the application of exergy principles often faces resistance because it challenges conventions about how we design, construct and operate human-engineered systems. This session will review several exergy case studies and conclude with an audience discussion of how exergy principles may be both applied and highlighted in formal and informal education settings.

An assessment system for rating scientific journals in the field of ergonomics and human factors.

PubMed

Dul, Jan; Karwowski, Waldemar

2004-05-01

A method for selecting and rating scientific and professional journals representing the discipline of ergonomics and human factors is proposed. The method is based upon the journal list, impact factors and citations provided by the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI), and the journal list published in the Ergonomics Abstracts. Three groups of journals were distinguished. The 'ergonomics journals' focus exclusively on ergonomics and human factors. The 'related journals' focus on other disciplines than ergonomics and human factors, but regularly publish ergonomics/human factors papers. The 'basic journals' focus on other technical, medical or social sciences than ergonomics, but are important for the development of ergonomics/human factors. Journal quality was rated using a maximum of four categories: top quality (A-level), high quality (B-level), good quality (C-level)) and professional (P-level). The above methods were applied to develop the Ergonomics Journal List 2004. A total of 25 'ergonomics journals', 58 'related journals' and 142 'basic journals' were classified.

Has compliance with CLIA requirements really improved quality in US clinical laboratories?

PubMed

Ehrmeyer, Sharon S; Laessig, Ronald H

2004-08-02

The Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA'88) mandate universal requirements for all U.S. clinical laboratory-testing sites. The intent of CLIA'88 is to ensure quality testing through a combination of minimum quality practices that incorporate total quality management concepts. These regulations do not contain established, objective indicators or measures to assess quality. However, there is an implicit assumption that compliance with traditionally accepted good laboratory practices--following manufacturers' directions, routinely analysing quality control materials, applying quality assurance principles, employing and assessing competent testing personnel, and participating in external quality assessment or proficiency testing (PT)--will result in improved test quality. The CLIA'88 regulations do include PT performance standards, which intentionally or unintentionally, define intra-laboratory performance. Passing PT has become a prime motivation for improving laboratory performance; it can also be used as an objective indicator to assess whether compliance to CLIA has improved intra-laboratory quality. Data from 1994 through 2002 indicate that the percentage of laboratories passing PT has increased. In addition to PT performance, subjective indicators of improved quality--frequency of inspection deficiencies, the number of government sanctions for non-compliance, and customer satisfaction--were evaluated. The results from these subjective indicators are more difficult to interpret but also seem to show improved quality in US clinical laboratories eleven years post-CLIA'88.

Impact of infectious diseases on population health using incidence-based disability-adjusted life years (DALYs): results from the Burden of Communicable Diseases in Europe study, European Union and European Economic Area countries, 2009 to 2013

PubMed Central

Cassini, Alessandro; Colzani, Edoardo; Pini, Alessandro; Mangen, Marie-Josee J; Plass, Dietrich; McDonald, Scott A; Maringhini, Guido; van Lier, Alies; Haagsma, Juanita A; Havelaar, Arie H; Kramarz, Piotr; Kretzschmar, Mirjam E

2018-01-01

Background and aims The Burden of Communicable Diseases in Europe (BCoDE) study aimed to calculate disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for 31 selected diseases in the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA). Methods: DALYs were estimated using an incidence-based and pathogen-based approach. Incidence was estimated through assessment of data availability and quality, and a correction was applied for under-estimation. Calculation of DALYs was performed with the BCoDE software toolkit without applying time discounting and age-weighting. Results: We estimated that one in 14 inhabitants experienced an infectious disease episode for a total burden of 1.38 million DALYs (95% uncertainty interval (UI): 1.25–1.5) between 2009 and 2013; 76% of which was related to the acute phase of the infection and its short-term complications. Influenza had the highest burden (30% of the total burden), followed by tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection/AIDS and invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Men had the highest burden measured in DALYs (60% of the total), adults 65 years of age and over had 24% and children less than 5 years of age had 11%. Age group-specific burden showed that infants (less than 1 year of age) and elderly people (80 years of age and over) experienced the highest burden. Conclusions: These results provide baseline estimates for evaluating infectious disease prevention and control strategies. The study promotes an evidence-based approach to describing population health and assessing surveillance data availability and quality, and provides information for the planning and prioritisation of limited resources in infectious disease prevention and control. PMID:29692315

Impact of infectious diseases on population health using incidence-based disability-adjusted life years (DALYs): results from the Burden of Communicable Diseases in Europe study, European Union and European Economic Area countries, 2009 to 2013.

PubMed

Cassini, Alessandro; Colzani, Edoardo; Pini, Alessandro; Mangen, Marie-Josee J; Plass, Dietrich; McDonald, Scott A; Maringhini, Guido; van Lier, Alies; Haagsma, Juanita A; Havelaar, Arie H; Kramarz, Piotr; Kretzschmar, Mirjam E; On Behalf Of The BCoDE Consortium

2018-04-01

Background and aimsThe Burden of Communicable Diseases in Europe (BCoDE) study aimed to calculate disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for 31 selected diseases in the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA). Methods: DALYs were estimated using an incidence-based and pathogen-based approach. Incidence was estimated through assessment of data availability and quality, and a correction was applied for under-estimation. Calculation of DALYs was performed with the BCoDE software toolkit without applying time discounting and age-weighting. Results: We estimated that one in 14 inhabitants experienced an infectious disease episode for a total burden of 1.38 million DALYs (95% uncertainty interval (UI): 1.25-1.5) between 2009 and 2013; 76% of which was related to the acute phase of the infection and its short-term complications. Influenza had the highest burden (30% of the total burden), followed by tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection/AIDS and invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Men had the highest burden measured in DALYs (60% of the total), adults 65 years of age and over had 24% and children less than 5 years of age had 11%. Age group-specific burden showed that infants (less than 1 year of age) and elderly people (80 years of age and over) experienced the highest burden. Conclusions: These results provide baseline estimates for evaluating infectious disease prevention and control strategies. The study promotes an evidence-based approach to describing population health and assessing surveillance data availability and quality, and provides information for the planning and prioritisation of limited resources in infectious disease prevention and control.

Effect of surface incorporation of broiler litter applied to no-till cotton on runoff quality.

PubMed

Adeli, A; Shankle, M W; Tewolde, H; Brooks, J P; Sistani, K R; McLaughlin, M R; Rowe, D E

2011-01-01

Surface application of broiler litter to no-till cotton could lead to degradation of water quality. Incorporation of broiler litter into the top surface soil (0.05 m) could alleviate this risk. A 2-yr field study was conducted on a silt loam upland soil to determine the effect of incorporation of broiler litter into the soil surface on nutrient and bacterial transport in runoff. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with four treatments and three replications. Treatments were (i) unfertilized control; (ii) surface-appliedbroiler litter at 7.8 Mg ha(-1) without incorporation; (iii) surface-applied broiler litter at 7.8 Mg ha(-1) with immediate incorporation; and (iv) inorganic fertilizer N (urea ammonium nitrate, 32% N) and inorganic fertilizer P (triple superphosphate) at the recommended rate. Phosphorus was surface appliedat 25 kg ha(-1) and N was injected at 101 kg ha(-1) into the soil using a commercial liquid fertilizer applicator. Runoff was collected from small runoff plots (2.4 m by 1.6 m) established at the bottom side of main plots (13.7 m by 6.0 m). Incorporation of broiler litter reduced total N (TN), NO3-N, water soluble P (WSP), and total P (TP) concentrations in runoffby 35, 25, 61, and 64%, respectively, and litter-associated bacteria by two to three orders of magnitude compared with unincorporated treatment. No significant difference in total suspended solids (TSS) in runoffwas obtained between incorporated and unincorporated treatments. Incorporation of broiler litter into the surface soil in the no-till system immediately after application minimized the potential risk for surface nutrient losses and bacteria transport in runoff.

A second order derivative scheme based on Bregman algorithm class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campagna, Rosanna; Crisci, Serena; Cuomo, Salvatore; Galletti, Ardelio; Marcellino, Livia

2016-10-01

The algorithms based on the Bregman iterative regularization are known for efficiently solving convex constraint optimization problems. In this paper, we introduce a second order derivative scheme for the class of Bregman algorithms. Its properties of convergence and stability are investigated by means of numerical evidences. Moreover, we apply the proposed scheme to an isotropic Total Variation (TV) problem arising out of the Magnetic Resonance Image (MRI) denoising. Experimental results confirm that our algorithm has good performance in terms of denoising quality, effectiveness and robustness.

[A methodological approach to assessing the quality of medical health information on its way from science to the mass media].

PubMed

Serong, Julia; Anhäuser, Marcus; Wormer, Holger

2015-01-01

A current research project deals with the question of how the quality of medical health information changes on its way from the academic journal via press releases to the news media. In an exploratory study a sample of 30 news items has been selected stage-by-stage from an adjusted total sample of 1,695 journalistic news items on medical research in 2013. Using a multidimensional set of criteria the news items as well as the corresponding academic articles, abstracts and press releases are examined by science journalists and medical experts. Together with a content analysis of the expert assessments, it will be verified to what extent established quality standards for medical journalism can be applied to medical health communication and public relations or even to studies and abstracts as well. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

Should we trust build-up/wash-off water quality models at the scale of urban catchments?

PubMed

Bonhomme, Céline; Petrucci, Guido

2017-01-01

Models of runoff water quality at the scale of an urban catchment usually rely on build-up/wash-off formulations obtained through small-scale experiments. Often, the physical interpretation of the model parameters, valid at the small-scale, is transposed to large-scale applications. Testing different levels of spatial variability, the parameter distributions of a water quality model are obtained in this paper through a Monte Carlo Markov Chain algorithm and analyzed. The simulated variable is the total suspended solid concentration at the outlet of a periurban catchment in the Paris region (2.3 km 2 ), for which high-frequency turbidity measurements are available. This application suggests that build-up/wash-off models applied at the catchment-scale do not maintain their physical meaning, but should be considered as "black-box" models. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Analysis of productivity, quality and cost of first grade laboratories: blood biometry].

PubMed

Avila, L; Hernández, P; Cruz, A; Zurita, B; Terres, A M; Cruz, C

1999-04-01

Assessment of productivity, quality and production costs and determination of the efficiency of top grade clinical laboratories in Mexico. Ten laboratories were selected from among the total number (52) existing in Mexico City, and the Donabedian model of structure, process and results were applied. Blood count was selected as a tracer. The principal problems found were: inadequate distribution of trained human resources, poor glass material, inadequate analytic process and low productivity. These factors are reflected in the unit costs, which exceed reference laboratory costs by 200%. Only 50% of the laboratories analyzed generate reliable results. Only 20% of the laboratories studied operate efficiently. To solve the problems identified requires integral strategies at different levels. A specific recomendation for the improvement of quality and productivity is an assessment of the cost/benefit of creating a central laboratory and using the remaining sites exclusively for the collection of samples.

Advanced scatter search approach and its application in a sequencing problem of mixed-model assembly lines in a case company

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Qiong; Wang, Wen-xi; Zhu, Ke-ren; Zhang, Chao-yong; Rao, Yun-qing

2014-11-01

Mixed-model assembly line sequencing is significant in reducing the production time and overall cost of production. To improve production efficiency, a mathematical model aiming simultaneously to minimize overtime, idle time and total set-up costs is developed. To obtain high-quality and stable solutions, an advanced scatter search approach is proposed. In the proposed algorithm, a new diversification generation method based on a genetic algorithm is presented to generate a set of potentially diverse and high-quality initial solutions. Many methods, including reference set update, subset generation, solution combination and improvement methods, are designed to maintain the diversification of populations and to obtain high-quality ideal solutions. The proposed model and algorithm are applied and validated in a case company. The results indicate that the proposed advanced scatter search approach is significant for mixed-model assembly line sequencing in this company.

Total Quality Management in Education. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sallis, Edward

Quality is at the top of most agendas, and improving quality is probably the most important task facing any institution. In addition, quality is difficult to define or measure. This book, the second edition of "Total Quality Management in Education," introduces the key concepts of Total Quality Management (TQM) and demonstrates how they…

What Is the Effect of Strength Training on Pain and Sleep in Patients With Fibromyalgia?

PubMed

Andrade, Alexandro; Vilarino, Guilherme Torres; Bevilacqua, Guilherme Guimarães

2017-12-01

The study aimed to investigate the effect of an 8-wk structured strength training program on pain and sleep quality in patients with fibromyalgia. Fifty-two patients with fibromyalgia were evaluated; 31 submitted to strength training and 21 comprised the control group. The instruments used were the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire and The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The questionnaires were applied before the first training session, at 12 sessions, and after 24 sessions. Descriptive statistics (mean, SD, and frequency) and inferential tests were used. After 8 wks of intervention, significant differences were found between groups in subjective quality of sleep (P = 0.03), sleep disturbance (P = 0.02), daytime dysfunction (P = 0.04), and total sleep score (P < 0.01). The correlation analysis using Spearman's test indicated a positive relationship between the variables of pain intensity and sleep quality (P < 0.01); when pain intensity increased in patients with fibromyalgia, sleep quality worsened. Strength training is safe and effective in treating people with fibromyalgia, and a significant decrease in sleep disturbances occurs after 8 wks of intervention.

Chrysanthemum morphology, photosynthetic efficiency and antioxidant capacity are differentially modified by light quality.

PubMed

Zheng, Liang; Van Labeke, Marie-Christine

2017-06-01

The effect of light quality on leaf morphology, photosynthetic efficiency and antioxidant capacity of leaves that fully developed under a specific spectrum was investigated in Chrysanthemum cv. Four light treatments were applied at 100μmolm -2 s -1 and a photoperiod of 14h using light-emitting diodes, which were 100% red (R), 100% blue (B), 75% red with 25% blue (RB) and white (W), respectively. Intraspecific variation was investigated by studying the response of eight cultivars. Overall, red light significantly decreased the leaf area while the thinnest leaves were observed for W. Chlorophyll content and Chl a/b ratio was highest for W and lowest under R. B and RB resulted in the highest maximum quantum yield (F v /F m ) and quantum efficiency (Φ PSII ). A negative correlation between heat dissipation (NPQ) and Φ PSII was found. Blue light induced the highest hydrogen peroxide content, which is a proxy for total ROS generation, followed by W and RB while low contents were found under R. The antioxidative response was not always correlated with hydrogen content and differed depending on the light quality treatment. Blue light enhanced the proline levels, while carotenoids, total flavonoid and phenolic compounds were higher under W. Intraspecific variation in the responses were observed for most parameters with exception of leaf thickness; this intraspecific variation was most pronounced for total phenolic and flavonoid compounds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Defense Depot Tracy Total Quality Management Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Depot Operations, Continuous Process Improvement 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18. SECURITY...make up our pcrceptions of Total Quality Management . Our goal is to improve those proven management processes that have brought us success while being...MANIAGEMENT F. QUALITY AUDITS OF PRODUCTS AND OPERATIONS ASSETS MANAGEMENT 00 i .......... / ~899 29 03 1 EFENSE DEPOT TACY TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLAN

Improvement of post-thawed sperm quality and fertility of Arian rooster by oral administration of d-aspartic acid.

PubMed

Ansari, Mahdi; Zhandi, Mahdi; Kohram, Hamid; Zaghari, Mojtaba; Sadeghi, Mostafa; Sharafi, Mohsen

2017-04-01

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of d-Aspartic acid (D-Asp) on post-thawed sperm quality, fertility and hatchability outcomes in male broiler breeders. Twenty 55-week-old roosters were selected and equally split into four groups (n = 5 rooster/group). Different daily D-Asp doses including 0 (D-0), 100 (D-100), 200 (D-200) or 300 (D-300) mg/kg BW were capsulated and individually administered for 12 weeks to roosters in each group. Semen samples were weekly collected from 7th to 12th week of experiment. Sperm quality from 7th to 11th week was evaluated in both fresh (total and forward motility and plasma membrane functionality) and post-thawed (total and forward motility, plasma membrane functionality, apoptosis status and mitochondrial activity) conditions. Also, collected semen samples on the 12th week were frozen and artificially inseminated to evaluate fertility and hatchability. The results from fresh condition showed that total and forward motility and plasma membrane functionality were significantly higher in D-200 compared to other groups. Also, interaction effect of time and treatment was not significant for all assessed parameters in fresh condition. In post-thawed condition, D-200 showed significantly higher total and forward motility, fertility and hatchability compared to other groups. The higher value for plasma membrane functionality and mitochondrial activity was observed in D-200 compared to D-0 and D300 groups. However, the percentage of live, early apoptotic and dead spermatozoa were not significantly affected by applied treatment in the current study. No significant difference for time and treat interaction effect was observed for all assessed parameters except forward motility. In conclusion, it seems that D-Asp administration could improve fresh and post-thawed sperm quality and post-thawed sperm fertility in male broiler breeders. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sustainable remediation of mercury contaminated soils by thermal desorption.

PubMed

Sierra, María J; Millán, Rocio; López, Félix A; Alguacil, Francisco J; Cañadas, Inmaculada

2016-03-01

Mercury soil contamination is an important environmental problem that needs the development of sustainable and efficient decontamination strategies. This work is focused on the application of a remediation technique that maintains soil ecological and environmental services to the extent possible as well as search for alternative sustainable land uses. Controlled thermal desorption using a solar furnace at pilot scale was applied to different types of soils, stablishing the temperature necessary to assure the functionality of these soils and avoid the Hg exchange to the other environmental compartments. Soil mercury content evolution (total, soluble, and exchangeable) as temperature increases and induced changes in selected soil quality indicators are studied and assessed. On total Hg, the temperature at which it is reduced until acceptable levels depends on the intended soil use and on how restrictive are the regulations. For commercial, residential, or industrial uses, soil samples should be heated to temperatures higher than 280 °C, at which more than 80 % of the total Hg is released, reaching the established legal total Hg level and avoiding eventual risks derived from high available Hg concentrations. For agricultural use or soil natural preservation, conversely, maintenance of acceptable levels of soil quality limit heating temperatures, and additional treatments must be considered to reduce available Hg. Besides total Hg concentration in soils, available Hg should be considered to make final decisions on remediation treatments and potential future uses. Graphical Abstract Solar energy use for remediation of soils affected by mercury.

Cost-of-illness in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis: a cross-sectional survey in Hungarian dermatological centres.

PubMed

Balogh, Orsolya; Brodszky, Valentin; Gulácsi, László; Herédi, Emese; Herszényi, Krisztina; Jókai, Hajnalka; Kárpáti, Sarolta; Baji, Petra; Remenyik, Éva; Szegedi, Andrea; Holló, Péter

2014-05-01

Despite the widespread availability of biological drugs in psoriasis, there is a shortage of disease burden studies. To assess the cost-of-illness and quality of life of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis in Hungary. Consecutive patients with Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) > 10 and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) > 10, or treated with traditional systemic (TST) or biological systemic treatment (BST) were included. Demographic data, clinical characteristics, psoriasis related medication, health care utilizations and employment status in the previous 12 months were recorded. Costing was performed from the societal perspective applying the human capital approach. Quality of life was assessed using DLQI and EQ-5D measures. Two-hundred patients were involved (females 32%) with a mean age of 51 (SD 13) years, 103 (52%) patients were on BST. Mean PASI, DLQI and EQ-5D scores were 8 (SD 10), 6 (SD 7) and 0.69 (SD 0.3), respectively. The mean total cost was €9,254/patient/year (SD 8,502) with direct costs accounting for 86%. The main cost driver was BST (mean €7,339/patient/year). Total costs differed significantly across treatment subgroups, mean (SD): no systemic therapy €2,186 (4,165), TST €2,388 (4,106) and BST €15,790 (6,016) (p < 0,001). Patients with BST had better PASI and DLQI scores (p < 0.01) than the other two subgroups. Patients with biological treatment have a significantly better quality of life and higher total costs than patients with or without traditional systemic treatment. Our study is the largest in Europe and the first in the CEE region that provides cost-of-illness data in psoriasis involving patients with BST.

Quality of persian addiction websites: a survey based on silberg, discern and wqet instruments (2011).

PubMed

Zahedi, Razieh; Taheri, Behjat; Shahrzadi, Leila; Tazhibi, Mehdi; Ashrafi-rizi, Hasan

2013-03-01

Nowadays, World Wide Web is an accessible and widespread resource to attain medical information. So physicians and health institutions try to inform patients about different domains of medicine through Web. Addiction is a noteworthy subject in medicine and a controversial issue among them. However, quality of health information on the internet is doubtful. The objective of this study is to determine the quality of Persian addiction websites to offer recommendation for their improvement. This was survey and an applied study that the study population was all Persian addiction websites. Sample of this study was 28 Persian addiction website which were chosen by searching Persian equivalences of 7 key terms (addiction, addict, addiction center, drug, treatment of addiction, recovery of addiction, addiction withdrawal) into the Google and Yahoo search engines. Finally, the websites were ranked based on the Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments. Data were analyzed with Excel software using descriptive statistics. The overall mean of websites in Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments were 1.42, 41.89, 64.57. Also the results showed that "Unit of Substance Abuse Treatment" belonging to Mashhad University of Medical Sciences was ranked first based on the Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments. 5 (from total of 9), 60 (from total of 80) and 82 (from total of normalized grade 82) were grades for this website for these instruments respectively. It showed that the quality of Persian websites according to Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments was "low", "more than half" and "very good" respectively. Not assigning date of entering data, author names, and references of information (authority) were most important missing characteristics of these websites. In addition, lack of interactive opportunities like chat rooms was another problem that leads to dissatisfaction of users.

Patient-Reported Outcomes and Total Health Care Expenditure in Prediction of Patient Satisfaction: Results From a National Study

PubMed Central

Zhang, Weiping; Chen, Wei; Bounsanga, Jerry; Cheng, Christine; Franklin, Jeremy D; Crum, Anthony B; Voss, Maren W; Hon, Shirley D

2015-01-01

Background Health care quality is often linked to patient satisfaction. Yet, there is a lack of national studies examining the relationship between patient satisfaction, patient-reported outcomes, and medical expenditure. Objective The aim of this study is to examine the contribution of physical health, mental health, general health, and total health care expenditures to patient satisfaction using a longitudinal, nationally representative sample. Methods Using data from the 2010-2011 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, analyses were conducted to predict patient satisfaction from patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditures. The study sample consisted of adult participants (N=10,157), with sampling weights representative of 233.26 million people in the United States. Results The results indicated that patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditure were associated with patient satisfaction such that higher physical and mental function, higher general health status, and higher total health care expenditure were associated with higher patient satisfaction. Conclusions We found that patient-reported outcomes and total health care expenditure had a significant relationship with patient satisfaction. As more emphasis is placed on health care value and quality, this area of research will become increasingly needed and critical questions should be asked about what we value in health care and whether we can find a balance between patient satisfaction, outcomes, and expenditures. Future research should apply big data analytics to investigate whether there is a differential effect of patient-reported outcomes and medical expenditures on patient satisfaction across different medical specialties. PMID:27227131

Intercomparison of Total Atmospheric Precipitable Water Vapor Retrieval Products during the 2009 and 2010 CAPABLE Summer Intensives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pippin, M. R.; Knepp, T. N.; Bedka, S.; Cowen, L.; Murray, J.; Deslover, D.; Feltz, W.; Yesalusky, M. A.; Smith, W.; Cede, A.; Abuhassan, N.; Herman, J. R.; Szykamn, J.

2011-12-01

In support of NASA's GEO-CAPE mission and Air Quality Applied Sciences, the Chemistry and Physics Atmospheric Boundary Layer Experiment (CAPABLE) site at NASA Langley Research Center has been established in coordination with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VA DEQ) to assess the relationship between high temporal resolution measurements from space and continuous in situ surface observations. During the 2009 and 2010 CAPABLE summer intensives, three methods for determining total atmospheric precipitable water vapor were utilized. Continuous total column measurements of water vapor were provided using a Pandora spectrometer, the DOE/NSTec Atmospheric Sounder Spectrometer for Infrared Spectral Technology (ASSIST) operated by the Hampton University and the University of Wisconsin Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (AERI). Continuous meteorological parameters were measured on a 5m tower and rawinsondes were launched intermittently throughout both measurement periods. We present preliminary results of the intercomparison of total precipitable water vapor from the three instrumental methods and compare with estimated values from dew point temperature and satellite overpass data. Results from this study will have applications to satellite validation and Pandora retrieval algorithm development. Disclaimer: Although this work was reviewed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and approved for publication, it may not necessarily reflect official Agency policy.

DESC (Defense Electronics Supply Center) Total Quality Management Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-04-01

Paoerwort Reduction Proodt(0704.01 ge. Washington. DC 20S03 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Api598 . FUNDING NUMBERS DESC Total Quality Management Master Plan...OF PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement,_________ cTainingManagement 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18... QUALITY MANAGEMENT As you read the DESC Total Quality Management Plan, I ask each of you to make a commitment to continuously strive for improvement

The Linear Programming to evaluate the performance of Oral Health in Primary Care.

PubMed

Colussi, Claudia Flemming; Calvo, Maria Cristina Marino; Freitas, Sergio Fernando Torres de

2013-01-01

To show the use of Linear Programming to evaluate the performance of Oral Health in Primary Care. This study used data from 19 municipalities of Santa Catarina city that participated of the state evaluation in 2009 and have more than 50,000 habitants. A total of 40 indicators were evaluated, calculated using the Microsoft Excel 2007, and converted to the interval [0, 1] in ascending order (one indicating the best situation and zero indicating the worst situation). Applying the Linear Programming technique municipalities were assessed and compared among them according to performance curve named "quality estimated frontier". Municipalities included in the frontier were classified as excellent. Indicators were gathered, and became synthetic indicators. The majority of municipalities not included in the quality frontier (values different of 1.0) had lower values than 0.5, indicating poor performance. The model applied to the municipalities of Santa Catarina city assessed municipal management and local priorities rather than the goals imposed by pre-defined parameters. In the final analysis three municipalities were included in the "perceived quality frontier". The Linear Programming technique allowed to identify gaps that must be addressed by city managers to enhance actions taken. It also enabled to observe each municipal performance and compare results among similar municipalities.

Towards European urinalysis guidelines. Introduction of a project under European Confederation of Laboratory Medicine.

PubMed

Kouri, T T; Gant, V A; Fogazzi, G B; Hofmann, W; Hallander, H O; Guder, W G

2000-07-01

Improved standardized performance is needed because urinalysis continues to be one of the most frequently requested laboratory tests. Since 1997, the European Confederation of Laboratory Medicine (ECLM) has been supporting an interdisciplinary project aiming to produce European urinalysis guidelines. More than seventy clinical chemists, microbiologists and ward-based clinicians, as well as representatives of manufacturers are taking part. These guidelines aim to improve the quality and consistency of chemical urinalysis, particle counting and bacterial culture by suggesting optimal investigative processes that could be applied in Europe. The approach is based on medical needs for urinalysis. The importance of the pre-analytical stage for total quality is stressed by detailed illustrative advice for specimen collection. Attention is also given to emerging automated technology. For cost containment reasons, both optimum (ideal) procedures and minimum analytical approaches are suggested. Since urinalysis mostly lacks genuine reference methods (primary reference measurement procedures; Level 4), a novel classification of the methods is proposed: comparison measurement procedures (Level 3), quantitative routine procedures (Level 2), and ordinal scale examinations (Level 1). Stepwise strategies are suggested to save costs, applying different rules for general and specific patient populations. New analytical quality specifications have been created. After a consultation period, the final written text will be published in full as a separate document.

Improving the quality of discrete-choice experiments in health: how can we assess validity and reliability?

PubMed

Janssen, Ellen M; Marshall, Deborah A; Hauber, A Brett; Bridges, John F P

2017-12-01

The recent endorsement of discrete-choice experiments (DCEs) and other stated-preference methods by regulatory and health technology assessment (HTA) agencies has placed a greater focus on demonstrating the validity and reliability of preference results. Areas covered: We present a practical overview of tests of validity and reliability that have been applied in the health DCE literature and explore other study qualities of DCEs. From the published literature, we identify a variety of methods to assess the validity and reliability of DCEs. We conceptualize these methods to create a conceptual model with four domains: measurement validity, measurement reliability, choice validity, and choice reliability. Each domain consists of three categories that can be assessed using one to four procedures (for a total of 24 tests). We present how these tests have been applied in the literature and direct readers to applications of these tests in the health DCE literature. Based on a stakeholder engagement exercise, we consider the importance of study characteristics beyond traditional concepts of validity and reliability. Expert commentary: We discuss study design considerations to assess the validity and reliability of a DCE, consider limitations to the current application of tests, and discuss future work to consider the quality of DCEs in healthcare.

[Paths to the professional and responsible use of antibiotics].

PubMed

Abele-Horn, Marianne; Pantke, Ellen; Eckmanns, Tim

2018-05-01

Germany's position on prescribing antibiotics is among the lower third in Europe. There are some countries that prescribe remarkably fewer antibiotics. In Germany, the number of out-patient antibiotic prescriptions is too high for patients with low-grade infections and non-bacterial infections. Often, broad-spectrum antibiotics are prescribed instead of narrow-spectrum antibiotics. For in-patients, perioperative prophylaxis is given for too long.In this article, different ways to reduce antibiotic prescriptions are introduced. Recommendations are given to improve the quality of therapy, implementation of diagnostics and scores, as well as information for physicians and patients.In this regard, an unsystematic literature search was done.To optimise the quality of prescribing, antibiotic checklists should be used. The important initial questions are if there is a bacterial infection and if antibiotic therapy is necessary. To apply diagnostics correctly is essential. Antibiotic use can be shortened or in some cases totally omitted if point-of-care tests (POCTs) are applied correctly. Species identification and resistance testing are essential for quality assurance. S3-guidelines are central for modern evidence-based medicine. Another key factor is good communication within the team and with patients. All measurements, like the application of POCTs, back-up prescribing, and prescribing an antibiotic, have to be communicated in a clear and sensitive way.

Inland-coastal water interaction: Remote sensing application for shallow-water quality and algal blooms modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melesse, Assefa; Hajigholizadeh, Mohammad; Blakey, Tara

2017-04-01

In this study, Landsat 8 and Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWIFS) sensors were used to model the spatiotemporal changes of four water quality parameters: Landsat 8 (turbidity, chlorophyll-a (chl-a), total phosphate, and total nitrogen) and Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWIFS) (algal blooms). The study was conducted in Florda bay, south Florida and model outputs were compared with in-situ observed data. The Landsat 8 based study found that, the predictive models to estimate chl-a and turbidity concentrations, developed through the use of stepwise multiple linear regression (MLR), gave high coefficients of determination in dry season (wet season) (R2 = 0.86(0.66) for chl-a and R2 = 0.84(0.63) for turbidity). Total phosphate and TN were estimated using best-fit multiple linear regression models as a function of Landsat TM and OLI,127 and ground data and showed a high coefficient of determination in dry season (wet season) (R2 = 0.74(0.69) for total phosphate and R2 = 0.82(0.82) for TN). Similarly, the ability of SeaWIFS for chl-a retrieval from optically shallow coastal waters by applying algorithms specific to the pixels' benthic class was evaluated. Benthic class was determined through satellite image-based classification methods. It was found that benthic class based chl-a modeling algorithm was better than the existing regionally-tuned approach. Evaluation of the residuals indicated the potential for further improvement to chl-a estimation through finer characterization of benthic environments. Key words: Landsat, SeaWIFS, water quality, Florida bay, Chl-a, turbidity

WE-FG-207B-05: Iterative Reconstruction Via Prior Image Constrained Total Generalized Variation for Spectral CT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Niu, S; Zhang, Y; Ma, J

Purpose: To investigate iterative reconstruction via prior image constrained total generalized variation (PICTGV) for spectral computed tomography (CT) using fewer projections while achieving greater image quality. Methods: The proposed PICTGV method is formulated as an optimization problem, which balances the data fidelity and prior image constrained total generalized variation of reconstructed images in one framework. The PICTGV method is based on structure correlations among images in the energy domain and high-quality images to guide the reconstruction of energy-specific images. In PICTGV method, the high-quality image is reconstructed from all detector-collected X-ray signals and is referred as the broad-spectrum image. Distinctmore » from the existing reconstruction methods applied on the images with first order derivative, the higher order derivative of the images is incorporated into the PICTGV method. An alternating optimization algorithm is used to minimize the PICTGV objective function. We evaluate the performance of PICTGV on noise and artifacts suppressing using phantom studies and compare the method with the conventional filtered back-projection method as well as TGV based method without prior image. Results: On the digital phantom, the proposed method outperforms the existing TGV method in terms of the noise reduction, artifacts suppression, and edge detail preservation. Compared to that obtained by the TGV based method without prior image, the relative root mean square error in the images reconstructed by the proposed method is reduced by over 20%. Conclusion: The authors propose an iterative reconstruction via prior image constrained total generalize variation for spectral CT. Also, we have developed an alternating optimization algorithm and numerically demonstrated the merits of our approach. Results show that the proposed PICTGV method outperforms the TGV method for spectral CT.« less

A Bayesian hierarchical latent trait model for estimating rater bias and reliability in large-scale performance assessment

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

We propose a novel approach to modelling rater effects in scoring-based assessment. The approach is based on a Bayesian hierarchical model and simulations from the posterior distribution. We apply it to large-scale essay assessment data over a period of 5 years. Empirical results suggest that the model provides a good fit for both the total scores and when applied to individual rubrics. We estimate the median impact of rater effects on the final grade to be ± 2 points on a 50 point scale, while 10% of essays would receive a score at least ± 5 different from their actual quality. Most of the impact is due to rater unreliability, not rater bias. PMID:29614129

Spatial and temporal variations in the relationship between lake water surface temperatures and water quality - A case study of Dianchi Lake.

PubMed

Yang, Kun; Yu, Zhenyu; Luo, Yi; Yang, Yang; Zhao, Lei; Zhou, Xiaolu

2018-05-15

Global warming and rapid urbanization in China have caused a series of ecological problems. One consequence has involved the degradation of lake water environments. Lake surface water temperatures (LSWTs) significantly shape water ecological environments and are highly correlated with the watershed ecosystem features and biodiversity levels. Analysing and predicting spatiotemporal changes in LSWT and exploring the corresponding impacts on water quality is essential for controlling and improving the ecological water environment of watersheds. In this study, Dianchi Lake was examined through an analysis of 54 water quality indicators from 10 water quality monitoring sites from 2005 to 2016. Support vector regression (SVR), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Back Propagation Artificial Neural Network (BPANN) methods were applied to form a hybrid forecasting model. A geospatial analysis was conducted to observe historical LSWTs and water quality changes for Dianchi Lake from 2005 to 2016. Based on the constructed model, LSWTs and changes in water quality were simulated for 2017 to 2020. The relationship between LSWTs and water quality thresholds was studied. The results show limited errors and highly generalized levels of predictive performance. In addition, a spatial visualization analysis shows that from 2005 to 2020, the chlorophyll-a (Chla), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen (TN) diffused from north to south and that ammonia nitrogen (NH 3 -N) and total phosphorus (TP) levels are increases in the northern part of Dianchi Lake, where the LSWT levels exceed 17°C. The LSWT threshold is 17.6-18.53°C, which falls within the threshold for nutritional water quality, but COD and TN levels fall below V class water quality standards. Transparency (Trans), COD, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and Chla levels present a close relationship with LSWT, and LSWTs are found to fundamentally affect lake cyanobacterial blooms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

River water quality assessment using environmentric techniques: case study of Jakara River Basin.

PubMed

Mustapha, Adamu; Aris, Ahmad Zaharin; Juahir, Hafizan; Ramli, Mohammad Firuz; Kura, Nura Umar

2013-08-01

Jakara River Basin has been extensively studied to assess the overall water quality and to identify the major variables responsible for water quality variations in the basin. A total of 27 sampling points were selected in the riverine network of the Upper Jakara River Basin. Water samples were collected in triplicate and analyzed for physicochemical variables. Pearson product-moment correlation analysis was conducted to evaluate the relationship of water quality parameters and revealed a significant relationship between salinity, conductivity with dissolved solids (DS) and 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and nitrogen in form of ammonia (NH4). Partial correlation analysis (r p) results showed that there is a strong relationship between salinity and turbidity (r p=0.930, p=0.001) and BOD5 and COD (r p=0.839, p=0.001) controlling for the linear effects of conductivity and NH4, respectively. Principal component analysis and or factor analysis was used to investigate the origin of each water quality parameter in the Jakara Basin and identified three major factors explaining 68.11 % of the total variance in water quality. The major variations are related to anthropogenic activities (irrigation agricultural, construction activities, clearing of land, and domestic waste disposal) and natural processes (erosion of river bank and runoff). Discriminant analysis (DA) was applied on the dataset to maximize the similarities between group relative to within-group variance of the parameters. DA provided better results with great discriminatory ability using eight variables (DO, BOD5, COD, SS, NH4, conductivity, salinity, and DS) as the most statistically significantly responsible for surface water quality variation in the area. The present study, however, makes several noteworthy contributions to the existing knowledge on the spatial variations of surface water quality and is believed to serve as a baseline data for further studies. Future research should therefore concentrate on the investigation of temporal variations of water quality in the basin.

a Study on the Introduction of Total Natural Resources Management System Using the Environmental Conservation Value Assessment Map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hwang, J.; Lee, K.; Jang, R.; Jeon, S.

2018-04-01

The environmental impact assessment system and the environmental plan for the preservation of the land environment are carried out with the aim of preventing damage to the environment caused by human activities, improving the quality of life and creating a pleasant environment. However, despite these various systems, the natural resources have been continuously damaged, and the system to cope with them has been advanced, but there has been a limit to fully conserve natural resources from development. The total amount of natural resources is being promoted as a part of the purpose of supplementing the system, but the evaluation method of the total amount of natural resources suitable for domestic situation is not presented yet. Natural resources are diverse and complicated in their categories and elements, and their measurement units are also diverse, making it difficult to synthesize them into one unit. Therefore, in this study, we proposed a method to calculate the total amount by using the evaluation map of the Environmental Conservation Value Assessment Map (ECVAM) which derives the final achievement with 5 grades using 65 evaluation items. However, we consistently applied the weight twice as much as the grade and did not utilize any information other than the map of ECVAM. The results of this study can be applied to the Total Natural Resources Management System through follow-up study such as application of various environmental information and weighting method.

Effects of argument quality, source credibility and self-reported diabetes knowledge on message attitudes: an experiment using diabetes related messages.

PubMed

Lin, Tung-Cheng; Hwang, Lih-Lian; Lai, Yung-Jye

2017-05-17

Previous studies have reported that credibility and content (argument quality) are the most critical factors affecting the quality of health information and its acceptance and use; however, this causal relationship merits further investigation in the context of health education. Moreover, message recipients' prior knowledge may moderate these relationships. This study used the elaboration likelihood model to determine the main effects of argument quality, source credibility and the moderating effect of self-reported diabetes knowledge on message attitudes. A between-subjects experimental design using an educational message concerning diabetes for manipulation was applied to validate the effects empirically. A total of 181 participants without diabetes were recruited from the Department of Health, Taipei City Government. Four group messages were manipulated in terms of argument quality (high and low) × source credibility (high and low). Argument quality and source credibility of health information significantly influenced the attitude of message recipients. The participants with high self-reported knowledge participants exhibited significant disapproval for messages with low argument quality. Effective health information should provide objective descriptions and cite reliable sources; in addition, it should provide accurate, customised messages for recipients who have high background knowledge level and ability to discern message quality. © 2017 Health Libraries Group Health Information & Libraries Journal.

Simulating and evaluating best management practices for integrated landscape management scenarios in biofuel feedstock production: Evaluating Best Management Practices for Biofuel Feedstock Production

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ha, Miae; Wu, May

Sound crop and land management strategies can maintain land productivity and improve the environmental sustainability of agricultural crop and feedstock production. This study evaluates the improvement of water sustainability through an integrated landscaping management strategy, where landscaping design, land management operations, crop systems, and agricultural best management practices (BMPs) play equal roles. The strategy was applied to the watershed of the South Fork Iowa River in Iowa, with a focus on implementing riparian buffers and converting low productivity land to provide cellulosic biomass while benefiting soil and water quality. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was employed to simulatemore » the impact of integrated landscape design on nutrients, suspended sediments, and flow on the watershed and subbasin scales. First, the study evaluated the representation of buffer strip as a vegetative barrier and as a riparian buffer using trapping efficiency and area ratio methods in SWAT. For the riparian buffer, the area ratio method tends to be more conservative, especially in nitrate loadings, while the trapping efficiency method generates more optimistic results. The differences between the two methods increase with buffer width. The two methods may not be comparable for the field-scale vegetative barrier simulation because of limitations in model spatial resolution. Landscape scenarios were developed to quantify water quality under (1) current land use, (2) partial land conversion to switchgrass, and (3) riparian buffer implementation. Results show that when low productivity land (15.2% of total watershed land area) is converted to grow switchgrass, suspended sediment, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and nitrate loadings are reduced by 69.3%, 55.5%, 46.1%, and 13.4%, respectively, in the watershed surface streams. The reduction was less extensive when riparian buffer strips (30 m or 50 m) were applied to the stream network at 1.4% of total land area in the watershed. At the subbasin level, the degree of nutrient and suspended sediment reduction varies extensively, ranging from a few percent up to 55%. Results indicate that effective landscape design on current agricultural land can potentially bring marked improvements in water quality and soil erosion control while producing food and fuel feedstock in the South Fork Iowa River watershed. The concept can be integrated with other watershed management programs to improve sustainability of land, water, and the ecosystem.« less

Pansharpening in coastal ecosystems using Worldview-2 imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibarrola-Ulzurrun, Edurne; Marcello-Ruiz, Javier; Gonzalo-Martin, Consuelo

2016-10-01

Both climate change and anthropogenic pressure impacts are producing a declining in ecosystem natural resources. In this work, a vulnerable coastal ecosystem, Maspalomas Natural Reserve (Canary Islands, Spain), is analyzed. The development of advanced image processing techniques, applied to new satellites with very high resolution sensors (VHR), are essential to obtain accurate and systematic information about such natural areas. Thus, remote sensing offers a practical and cost-effective means for a good environmental management although some improvements are needed by the application of pansharpening techniques. A preliminary assessment was performed selecting classical and new algorithms that could achieve good performance with WorldView-2 imagery. Moreover, different quality indices were used in order to asses which pansharpening technique gives a better fused image. A total of 7 pansharpening algorithms were analyzed using 6 spectral and spatial quality indices. The quality assessment was implemented for the whole set of multispectral bands and for those bands covered by the wavelength range of the panchromatic image and outside of it. After an extensive evaluation, the most suitable algorithm was the Weighted Wavelet `à trous' through Fractal Dimension Maps technique which provided the best compromise between the spectral and spatial quality for the image. Finally, Quality Map Analysis was performed in order to study the fusion in each band at local level. As conclusion, novel analysis has been conducted covering the evaluation of fusion methods in shallow water areas. Hence, the excellent results provided by this study have been applied to the generation of challenging thematic maps of coastal and dunes protected areas.

An application of business process method to the clinical efficiency of hospital.

PubMed

Leu, Jun-Der; Huang, Yu-Tsung

2011-06-01

The concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) has come to be applied in healthcare over the last few years. The process management category in the Baldrige Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence model is designed to evaluate the quality of medical services. However, a systematic approach for implementation support is necessary to achieve excellence in the healthcare business process. The Architecture of Integrated Information Systems (ARIS) is a business process architecture developed by IDS Scheer AG and has been applied in a variety of industrial application. It starts with a business strategy to identify the core and support processes, and encompasses the whole life-cycle range, from business process design to information system deployment, which is compatible with the concept of healthcare performance excellence criteria. In this research, we apply the basic ARIS framework to optimize the clinical processes of an emergency department in a mid-size hospital with 300 clinical beds while considering the characteristics of the healthcare organization. Implementation of the case is described, and 16 months of clinical data are then collected, which are used to study the performance and feasibility of the method. The experience gleaned in this case study can be used a reference for mid-size hospitals with similar business models.

Consideration of rainwater quality parameters for drinking purposes: A case study in rural Vietnam.

PubMed

Lee, Minju; Kim, Mikyeong; Kim, Yonghwan; Han, Mooyoung

2017-09-15

Rainwater, which is used for drinking purposes near Hanoi, Vietnam, was analysed for water quality based on 1.5 years of monitoring data. In total, 23 samples were collected from different points within two rainwater harvesting systems (RWHSs). Most parameters met the standard except micro-organisms. Coliform and Escherichia coli (E. coli) were detected when the rainwater was not treated with ultraviolet (UV) light; however, analysis of rainwater after UV sterilisation showed no trace of micro-organisms. The RWHSs appear to provide drinking water of relatively good quality compared with surface water and groundwater. The superior quality of the rainwater suggests the necessity for new drinking rainwater standards because applying all of the drinking water quality standards to rainwater is highly inefficient. The traditionally implemented standards could cause more difficulties for developing countries using RWHSs installed decentralized as a source of drinking water, particularly in areas not well supplied with testing equipment, because such countries must bear the expense and time for these measures. This paper proposes the necessity of rainwater quality guideline, which could serve as a safe and cost-effective alternative to provide an access to safe drinking water. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

DPSC (Defense Personnel Support Center) Total Quality Management Master Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

SUBTITLE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS DPSC Total Quality Management Master Plan 6. AUTHOR(S) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) B. PERFORMING...quality supported solider, sailor, airman and marine. % j cl 1 14. SUBJECT TERMS I 1S. NUMBER OF PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous...THE COMMANDER ON TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT i SECTION I INTRODUCTION 1 II CONCEPTS 6 TQM Basics 7 Continuous Process Improvement 7 DoD TQM Philosophy 9

Nutrients and sediment in frozen-ground runoff from no-till fields receiving liquid-dairy and solid-beef manures

USGS Publications Warehouse

Komiskey, Matthew J.; Stuntebeck, Todd D.; Frame, Dennis R.; Madison, Fred W.

2011-01-01

Nutrients and sediment in surface runoff from frozen agricultural fields were monitored within three small (16.0 ha [39.5 ac] or less), adjacent basins at a no-till farm in southwest Wisconsin during four winters from 2003 to 2004 through 2006 to 2007. Runoff depths and flow-weighted constituent concentrations were compared to determine the impacts of surface-applied liquid-dairy or solid-beef manure to frozen and/or snow-covered ground. Despite varying the manure type and the rate and timing of applications, runoff depths were not significantly different among basins within each winter period. Sediment losses were low (generally less than 22 kg ha−1 [20 lb ac−1] in any year) and any statistical differences in sediment concentrations among basins were not related to the presence or absence of manure or the amount of runoff. Concentrations and losses of total nitrogen and total phosphorus were significantly increased in basins that had either manure type applied less than one week preceding runoff. These increases occurred despite relatively low application rates. Lower concentrations and losses were measured in basins that had manure applied in fall and early winter and an extended period of time (months) had elapsed before the first runoff event. The highest mean, flow-weighted concentrations of total nitrogen (31.8 mg L−1) and total phosphorus (10.9 mg L−1) occurred in winter 2003 to 2004, when liquid-dairy manure was applied less than one week before runoff. On average, dissolved phosphorus accounted for over 80% of all phosphorus measured in runoff during frozen-ground periods. The data collected as part of this study add to the limited information on the quantity and quality of frozen-ground runoff at field edges, and the results highlight the importance of manure management decisions during frozen-ground periods to minimize nutrients lost in surface runoff.

A real-time monitoring and assessment method for calculation of total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted in subway stations.

PubMed

Oh, TaeSeok; Kim, MinJeong; Lim, JungJin; Kang, OnYu; Shetty, K Vidya; SankaraRao, B; Yoo, ChangKyoo; Park, Jae Hyung; Kim, Jeong Tai

2012-05-01

Subway systems are considered as main public transportation facility in developed countries. Time spent by people in indoors, such as underground spaces, subway stations, and indoor buildings, has gradually increased in the recent past. Especially, operators or old persons who stay in indoor environments more than 15 hr per day usually influenced a greater extent by indoor air pollutants. Hence, regulations on indoor air pollutants are needed to ensure good health of people. Therefore, in this study, a new cumulative calculation method for the estimation of total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted inside the subway station is proposed by taking cumulative amounts of indoor air pollutants based on integration concept. Minimum concentration of individual air pollutants which naturally exist in indoor space is referred as base concentration of air pollutants and can be found from the data collected. After subtracting the value of base concentration from data point of each data set of indoor air pollutant, the primary quantity of emitted air pollutant is calculated. After integration is carried out with these values, adding the base concentration to the integration quantity gives the total amount of indoor air pollutant emitted. Moreover the values of new index for cumulative indoor air quality obtained for 1 day are calculated using the values of cumulative air quality index (CAI). Cumulative comprehensive indoor air quality index (CCIAI) is also proposed to compare the values of cumulative concentrations of indoor air pollutants. From the results, it is clear that the cumulative assessment approach of indoor air quality (IAQ) is useful for monitoring the values of total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted, in case of exposure to indoor air pollutants for a long time. Also, the values of CCIAI are influenced more by the values of concentration of NO2, which is released due to the use of air conditioners and combustion of the fuel. The results obtained in this study confirm that the proposed method can be applied to monitor total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted, inside apartments and hospitals as well. Nowadays, subway systems are considered as main public transportation facility in developed countries. Time spent by people in indoors, such as underground spaces, subway stations, and indoor buildings, has gradually increased in the recent past. Especially, operators or old persons who stay in the indoor environments more than 15 hr per day usually influenced a greater extent by indoor air pollutants. Hence, regulations on indoor air pollutants are needed to ensure good health of people. Therefore, this paper presents a new methodology for monitoring and assessing total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted inside underground spaces and subway stations. A new methodology for the calculation of cumulative amounts of indoor air pollutants based on integration concept is proposed. The results suggest that the cumulative assessment approach of IAQ is useful for monitoring the values of total amounts of indoor air pollutants, if indoor air pollutants accumulated for a long time, especially NO2 pollutants. The results obtained here confirm that the proposed method can be applied to monitor total amounts of indoor air pollutants emitted, inside apartments and hospitals as well.

Effects of gamma irradiation on physicochemical properties of Korean red ginseng powder

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byun, Myung-Woo; Yook, Hong-Sun; Kwon, Oh-Jin; Kang, Il-Jun

1997-04-01

Gamma irradiation was applied to Korean red ginseng powder to improve its quality. Major physicochemical properties (approximate composition, pH, acidity, browning pigment, hydrogen donating activity, fatty acids, minerals and saponin) were not significantly changed by gamma irradiation up to 10 kGy. The TBA value was increased depending on the increment of irradiation dose level. In free amino acids, threonine was increased while, serine and glutamic acid were decreased by gamma irradiation. In total amino acids, total contents were not significantly changed by gamma irradiation though tyrosine was slightly decreased P ⩽ 0.05. In free sugar, glucose, sucrose and maltose were significantly increased by 7.5 and 10 kGy gamma irradiation P ⩽ 0.05

Temporal evolution modeling of hydraulic and water quality performance of permeable pavements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jian; He, Jianxun; Valeo, Caterina; Chu, Angus

2016-02-01

A mathematical model for predicting hydraulic and water quality performance in both the short- and long-term is proposed based on field measurements for three types of permeable pavements: porous asphalt (PA), porous concrete (PC), and permeable inter-locking concrete pavers (PICP). The model was applied to three field-scale test sites in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The model performance was assessed in terms of hydraulic parameters including time to peak, peak flow and water balance and a water quality variable (the removal rate of total suspended solids). A total of 20 simulated storm events were used for model calibration and verification processes. The proposed model can simulate the outflow hydrographs with a coefficient of determination (R2) ranging from 0.762 to 0.907, and normalized root-mean-square deviation (NRMSD) ranging from 13.78% to 17.83%. Comparison of the time to peak flow, peak flow, runoff volume and TSS removal rates between the measured and modeled values in model verification phase had a maximum difference of 11%. The results demonstrate that the proposed model is capable of capturing the temporal dynamics of the pavement performance. Therefore, the model has great potential as a practical modeling tool for permeable pavement design and performance assessment.

Elderly quality of life impacted by traditional chinese medicine techniques

PubMed Central

Figueira, Helena A; Figueira, Olivia A; Figueira, Alan A; Figueira, Joana A; Giani, Tania S; Dantas, Estélio HM

2010-01-01

Background: The shift in age structure is having a profound impact, suggesting that the aged should be consulted as reporters on the quality of their own lives. Objectives: The aim of this research was to establish the possible impact of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) techniques on the quality of life (QOL) of the elderly. Sample: Two non-selected, volunteer groups of Rio de Janeiro municipality inhabitants: a control group (36 individuals), not using TCM, and an experimental group (28 individuals), using TCM at ABACO/Sohaku-in Institute, Brazil. Methods: A questionnaire on elderly QOL devised by the World Health Organization, the WHOQOL-Old, was adopted and descriptive statistical techniques were used: mean and standard deviation. The Shapiro–Wilk test checked the normality of the distribution. Furthermore, based on its normality distribution for the intergroup comparison, the Student t test was applied to facets 2, 4, 5, 6, and total score, and the Mann–Whitney U rank test to facets 1 and 3, both tests aiming to analyze the P value between experimental and control groups. The significance level utilized was 95% (P < 0.05). Results: The experimental group reported the highest QOL for every facet and the total score. Conclusions: The results suggest that TCM raises the level of QOL. PMID:21103400

Estimating Biochemical Parameters of Tea (camellia Sinensis (L.)) Using Hyperspectral Techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bian, M.; Skidmore, A. K.; Schlerf, M.; Liu, Y.; Wang, T.

2012-07-01

Tea (Camellia Sinensis (L.)) is an important economic crop and the market price of tea depends largely on its quality. This research aims to explore the potential of hyperspectral remote sensing on predicting the concentration of biochemical components, namely total tea polyphenols, as indicators of tea quality at canopy scale. Experiments were carried out for tea plants growing in the field and greenhouse. Partial least squares regression (PLSR), which has proven to be the one of the most successful empirical approach, was performed to establish the relationship between reflectance and biochemical concentration across six tea varieties in the field. Moreover, a novel integrated approach involving successive projections algorithms as band selection method and neural networks was developed and applied to detect the concentration of total tea polyphenols for one tea variety, in order to explore and model complex nonlinearity relationships between independent (wavebands) and dependent (biochemicals) variables. The good prediction accuracies (r2 > 0.8 and relative RMSEP < 10 %) achieved for tea plants using both linear (partial lease squares regress) and nonlinear (artificial neural networks) modelling approaches in this study demonstrates the feasibility of using airborne and spaceborne sensors to cover wide areas of tea plantation for in situ monitoring of tea quality cheaply and rapidly.

Low-calorie- and calorie-sweetened beverages: diet quality, food intake, and purchase patterns of US household consumers123

PubMed Central

Piernas, Carmen; Mendez, Michelle A; Ng, Shu Wen; Gordon-Larsen, Penny; Popkin, Barry M

2014-01-01

Background: Few studies have investigated the diet quality of consumers of low-calorie-sweetened (LCS) and calorie-sweetened (CS) beverages. Objective: The objective was to examine the dietary quality and adherence to dietary purchasing and consumption patterns of beverage consumers from 2000 to 2010. Design: We analyzed purchases for 140,352 households from the Homescan longitudinal data set 2000–2010 and dietary intake from NHANES 2003–2010 (n = 34,393). We defined mutually exclusive consumer profiles as main exposures: LCS beverages, CS beverages, LCS & CS beverages, and non/low consumers. As main outcomes, we explored dietary quality by using total energy and macronutrients (kcal/d). We performed factor analyses and applied factor scores to derive dietary patterns as secondary outcomes. Using multivariable linear (NHANES) and random-effects (Homescan) models, we investigated the associations between beverage profiles and dietary patterns. Results: We found “prudent” and “breakfast” patterns in Homescan and NHANES, “ready-to-eat meals/fast-food” and “prudent/snacks/LCS desserts” patterns in Homescan, and “protein/potatoes” and “CS desserts/sweeteners” patterns in NHANES. In both data sets, compared with non/low consumers, both CS- and LCS-beverage consumers had a significantly higher total energy from foods, higher energy from total and SFAs, and lower probability of adherence to prudent and breakfast patterns. In Homescan, LCS-beverage consumers had a higher probability of adherence to 2 distinct patterns: a prudent/snacks/LCS dessert pattern and a ready-to-eat meals/fast-food purchasing pattern. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that overall dietary quality is lower in LCS-, CS-, and LCS & CS–beverage consumers relative to non/low consumers. Our study highlights the importance of targeting foods that are linked with sweetened beverages (either LCS or CS) in intervention and policy efforts that aim to improve nutrition in the United States. PMID:24351878

Uncertainty analysis of the simulations of effects of discharging treated wastewater to the Red River of the North at Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wesolowski, Edwin A.

1996-01-01

Two separate studies to simulate the effects of discharging treated wastewater to the Red River of the North at Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota, have been completed. In the first study, the Red River at Fargo Water-Quality Model was calibrated and verified for icefree conditions. In the second study, the Red River at Fargo Ice-Cover Water-Quality Model was verified for ice-cover conditions.To better understand and apply the Red River at Fargo Water-Quality Model and the Red River at Fargo Ice-Cover Water-Quality Model, the uncertainty associated with simulated constituent concentrations and property values was analyzed and quantified using the Enhanced Stream Water Quality Model-Uncertainty Analysis. The Monte Carlo simulation and first-order error analysis methods were used to analyze the uncertainty in simulated values for six constituents and properties at sites 5, 10, and 14 (upstream to downstream order). The constituents and properties analyzed for uncertainty are specific conductance, total organic nitrogen (reported as nitrogen), total ammonia (reported as nitrogen), total nitrite plus nitrate (reported as nitrogen), 5-day carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand for ice-cover conditions and ultimate carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand for ice-free conditions, and dissolved oxygen. Results are given in detail for both the ice-cover and ice-free conditions for specific conductance, total ammonia, and dissolved oxygen.The sensitivity and uncertainty of the simulated constituent concentrations and property values to input variables differ substantially between ice-cover and ice-free conditions. During ice-cover conditions, simulated specific-conductance values are most sensitive to the headwatersource specific-conductance values upstream of site 10 and the point-source specific-conductance values downstream of site 10. These headwater-source and point-source specific-conductance values also are the key sources of uncertainty. Simulated total ammonia concentrations are most sensitive to the point-source total ammonia concentrations at all three sites. Other input variables that contribute substantially to the variability of simulated total ammonia concentrations are the headwater-source total ammonia and the instream reaction coefficient for biological decay of total ammonia to total nitrite. Simulated dissolved-oxygen concentrations at all three sites are most sensitive to headwater-source dissolved-oxygen concentration. This input variable is the key source of variability for simulated dissolved-oxygen concentrations at sites 5 and 10. Headwatersource and point-source dissolved-oxygen concentrations are the key sources of variability for simulated dissolved-oxygen concentrations at site 14.During ice-free conditions, simulated specific-conductance values at all three sites are most sensitive to the headwater-source specific-conductance values. Headwater-source specificconductance values also are the key source of uncertainty. The input variables to which total ammonia and dissolved oxygen are most sensitive vary from site to site and may or may not correspond to the input variables that contribute the most to the variability. The input variables that contribute the most to the variability of simulated total ammonia concentrations are pointsource total ammonia, instream reaction coefficient for biological decay of total ammonia to total nitrite, and Manning's roughness coefficient. The input variables that contribute the most to the variability of simulated dissolved-oxygen concentrations are reaeration rate, sediment oxygen demand rate, and headwater-source algae as chlorophyll a.

Yield, Quality, and Nutrient Concentrations of Strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch. cv. 'Sonata') Grown with Different Organic Fertilizer Strategies.

PubMed

Pokhrel, Bhaniswor; Laursen, Kristian Holst; Petersen, Karen Koefoed

2015-06-17

Four combinations of two solid organic fertilizers (Monterra Malt and chicken manure) applied before planting and two liquid organic fertilizers (broad bean and Pioner Hi-Fruit/K-Max) given through drip irrigation (fertigation) were compared with inorganic fertilization regarding growth, yield, nutrient concentration, and fruit quality of strawberries. Broad bean fertigation combined with Monterra Malt resulted in a similar fruit yield as inorganic fertilizer and a higher yield than Monterra Malt combined with Pioner; however, total soluble solids, firmness, and titratable acid were improved with Pioner fertigation, although these parameters were more affected by harvest time than the applied fertilizers. The concentrations of most nutrients in fruits and leaves were higher in inorganically fertigated plants. The reductions in fruit yield in three of four treatments and fruit weight in all organic treatments may be due to a combination of the following conditions in the root zone: (1) high pH and high NH4(+)/NO3(-) ratio; (2) high EC and/or high NaCl concentration; (3) cation imbalance; and (4) nutrient deficiency.

Using the Integration of Discrete Event and Agent-Based Simulation to Enhance Outpatient Service Quality in an Orthopedic Department.

PubMed

Kittipittayakorn, Cholada; Ying, Kuo-Ching

2016-01-01

Many hospitals are currently paying more attention to patient satisfaction since it is an important service quality index. Many Asian countries' healthcare systems have a mixed-type registration, accepting both walk-in patients and scheduled patients. This complex registration system causes a long patient waiting time in outpatient clinics. Different approaches have been proposed to reduce the waiting time. This study uses the integration of discrete event simulation (DES) and agent-based simulation (ABS) to improve patient waiting time and is the first attempt to apply this approach to solve this key problem faced by orthopedic departments. From the data collected, patient behaviors are modeled and incorporated into a massive agent-based simulation. The proposed approach is an aid for analyzing and modifying orthopedic department processes, allows us to consider far more details, and provides more reliable results. After applying the proposed approach, the total waiting time of the orthopedic department fell from 1246.39 minutes to 847.21 minutes. Thus, using the correct simulation model significantly reduces patient waiting time in an orthopedic department.

Using the Integration of Discrete Event and Agent-Based Simulation to Enhance Outpatient Service Quality in an Orthopedic Department

PubMed Central

Kittipittayakorn, Cholada

2016-01-01

Many hospitals are currently paying more attention to patient satisfaction since it is an important service quality index. Many Asian countries' healthcare systems have a mixed-type registration, accepting both walk-in patients and scheduled patients. This complex registration system causes a long patient waiting time in outpatient clinics. Different approaches have been proposed to reduce the waiting time. This study uses the integration of discrete event simulation (DES) and agent-based simulation (ABS) to improve patient waiting time and is the first attempt to apply this approach to solve this key problem faced by orthopedic departments. From the data collected, patient behaviors are modeled and incorporated into a massive agent-based simulation. The proposed approach is an aid for analyzing and modifying orthopedic department processes, allows us to consider far more details, and provides more reliable results. After applying the proposed approach, the total waiting time of the orthopedic department fell from 1246.39 minutes to 847.21 minutes. Thus, using the correct simulation model significantly reduces patient waiting time in an orthopedic department. PMID:27195606

Applying business management models in health care.

PubMed

Trisolini, Michael G

2002-01-01

Most health care management training programmes and textbooks focus on only one or two models or conceptual frameworks, but the increasing complexity of health care organizations and their environments worldwide means that a broader perspective is needed. This paper reviews five management models developed for business organizations and analyses issues related to their application in health care. Three older, more 'traditional' models are first presented. These include the functional areas model, the tasks model and the roles model. Each is shown to provide a valuable perspective, but to have limitations if used in isolation. Two newer, more 'innovative' models are next discussed. These include total quality management (TQM) and reengineering. They have shown potential for enabling dramatic improvements in quality and cost, but have also been found to be more difficult to implement. A series of 'lessons learned' are presented to illustrate key success factors for applying them in health care organizations. In sum, each of the five models is shown to provide a useful perspective for health care management. Health care managers should gain experience and training with a broader set of business management models.

Quality assessment of raw and processed Arctium lappa L. through multicomponent quantification, chromatographic fingerprint, and related chemometric analysis.

PubMed

Qin, Kunming; Wang, Bin; Li, Weidong; Cai, Hao; Chen, Danni; Liu, Xiao; Yin, Fangzhou; Cai, Baochang

2015-05-01

In traditional Chinese medicine, raw and processed herbs are used to treat different diseases. Suitable quality assessment methods are crucial for the discrimination between raw and processed herbs. The dried fruit of Arctium lappa L. and their processed products are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine, yet their therapeutic effects are different. In this study, a novel strategy using high-performance liquid chromatography and diode array detection coupled with multivariate statistical analysis to rapidly explore raw and processed Arctium lappa L. was proposed and validated. Four main components in a total of 30 batches of raw and processed Fructus Arctii samples were analyzed, and ten characteristic peaks were identified in the fingerprint common pattern. Furthermore, similarity evaluation, principal component analysis, and hierachical cluster analysis were applied to demonstrate the distinction. The results suggested that the relative amounts of the chemical components of raw and processed Fructus Arctii samples are different. This new method has been successfully applied to detect the raw and processed Fructus Arctii in marketed herbal medicinal products. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Water Deficit and Salinity Stress Reveal Many Specific QTL for Plant Growth and Fruit Quality Traits in Tomato

PubMed Central

Diouf, Isidore A.; Derivot, Laurent; Bitton, Frédérique; Pascual, Laura; Causse, Mathilde

2018-01-01

Quality is a key trait in plant breeding, especially for fruit and vegetables. Quality involves several polygenic components, often influenced by environmental conditions with variable levels of genotype × environment interaction that must be considered in breeding strategies aiming to improve quality. In order to assess the impact of water deficit and salinity on tomato fruit quality, we evaluated a multi-parent advanced generation intercross (MAGIC) tomato population in contrasted environmental conditions over 2 years, one year in control vs. drought condition and the other in control vs. salt condition. Overall 250 individual lines from the MAGIC population—derived from eight parental lines covering a large diversity in cultivated tomato—were used to identify QTL in both experiments for fruit quality and yield component traits (fruit weight, number of fruit, Soluble Solid Content, firmness), phenology traits (time to flower and ripe) and a vegetative trait, leaf length. All the traits showed a large genotype variation (33–86% of total phenotypic variation) in both experiments and high heritability whatever the year or treatment. Significant genotype × treatment interactions were detected for five of the seven traits over the 2 years of experiments. QTL were mapped using 1,345 SNP markers. A total of 54 QTL were found among which 15 revealed genotype × environment interactions and 65% (35 QTL) were treatment specific. Confidence intervals of the QTL were projected on the genome physical map and allowed identifying regions carrying QTL co-localizations, suggesting pleiotropic regulation. We then applied a strategy for candidate gene detection based on the high resolution mapping offered by the MAGIC population, the allelic effect of each parental line at the QTL and the sequence information of the eight parental lines. PMID:29559986

Predicting the Effect of Changing Precipitation Extremes and Land Cover Change on Urban Water Quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

SUN, N.; Yearsley, J. R.; Lettenmaier, D. P.

2013-12-01

Recent research shows that precipitation extremes in many of the largest U.S. urban areas have increased over the last 60 years. These changes have important implications for stormwater runoff and water quality, which in urban areas are dominated by the most extreme precipitation events. We assess the potential implications of changes in extreme precipitation and changing land cover in urban and urbanizing watersheds at the regional scale using a combination of hydrology and water quality models. Specifically, we describe the integration of a spatially distributed hydrological model - the Distributed Hydrology Soil Vegetation Model (DHSVM), the urban water quality model in EPA's Storm Water Management Model (SWMM), the semi-Lagrangian stream temperature model RBM10, and dynamical and statistical downscaling methods applied to global climate predictions. Key output water quality parameters include total suspended solids (TSS), toal nitrogen, total phosphorous, fecal coliform bacteria and stream temperature. We have evaluated the performance of the modeling system in the highly urbanized Mercer Creek watershed in the rapidly growing Bellevue urban area in WA, USA. The results suggest that the model is able to (1) produce reasonable streamflow predictions at fine temporal and spatial scales; (2) provide spatially distributed water temperature predictions that mostly agree with observations throughout a complex stream network, and characterize impacts of climate, landscape, near-stream vegetation change on stream temperature at local and regional scales; and (3) capture plausibly the response of water quality constituents to varying magnitude of precipitation events in urban environments. Next we will extend the scope of the study from the Mercer Creek watershed to include the entire Puget Sound Basin, WA, USA.

Iodide and iodate effects on the growth and fruit quality of strawberry.

PubMed

Li, Rui; Liu, Hui-Ping; Hong, Chun-Lai; Dai, Zi-Xi; Liu, Jia-Wei; Zhou, Jun; Hu, Chun-Qing; Weng, Huan-Xin

2017-01-01

Iodine deficiency is an environmental health problem affecting one-third of the global population. An iodine biofortification hydroponic experiment was conducted to explore the iodide and iodate uptake characteristics of strawberry plants, to measure the dosage effects of iodine on plant growth and to evaluate the influence of I - or IO 3 - application on fruit quality. After biofortification, the iodine contents of the fresh strawberry fruits were 600-4000 µg kg -1 , covering the WHO dietary iodine allowance of 150 µg · day -1 for adults. The iodine uptake of the strawberry plants increased with increasing I - or IO 3 - concentration of the culture solution. At the same iodine concentration, the iodate uptakes of various plant organs under I - treatments were apparently more than those under IO 3 - treatments. Low-level exogenous iodine (I - ≤ 0.25 mg L -1 or IO 3 - ≤ 0.50 mg L -1 ) not only promoted plant growth and increased biomass per plant, but also improved fruit quality by enhancing the vitamin C and soluble sugar contents of the strawberry fruits. Nevertheless, excessive exogenous iodine inhibited plant growth and reduced biomass per plant. IO 3 - uptake apparently increased the total acidity and nitrate content of the fruits, reducing the quality of the strawberry fruits. Conversely, I - uptake obviously decreased the total acidity and nitrate content of the strawberry fruits, improving the fruit quality. The strawberry can be used as a target crop for iodine biofortification. Furthermore, applying an appropriate dose of KI can improve the fruit quality of the strawberry plants. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Effectiveness of Robot Paro in Intramural Psychogeriatric Care: A Multicenter Quasi-Experimental Study.

PubMed

Bemelmans, Roger; Gelderblom, Gert Jan; Jonker, Pieter; de Witte, Luc

2015-11-01

Together with care professionals, specific psychogeriatric care applications were developed for the seal robot Paro. This study aims to evaluate the outcomes of the developed Paro interventions, applying the robot in psychogeriatric care. A multicenter quasi-experimental time series ABAB study (n = 91) with within-subject comparison was conducted to assess both the short-term effects of the Paro interventions for therapeutic applications, and the facilitation of daily care activities by care providers. Small-scale care units (8-10 residents each), spread over 6 different locations, in 3 Dutch care institutions for intramural psychogeriatric care. A total of 91 patients with dementia, in all stages of dementia. Two user-centered intervention types were applied, one for therapeutic purposes and one for the facilitation of daily care activities. Effectiveness was measured with a goal attainment scale (IPPA) and a mood scale (Coop/Wonca), by means of a registration form. A total of 106 user-specific interventions were defined for 91 participants; 71 participants completed the study, 14 were men and 57 were women. All interventions combined show a significant effect (P < .001). Paro should be seen as a tool for care staff and not as a replacement of care. Successful implementation of Paro in daily intramural psychogeriatric care practice can increase the quality of care and the quality of life for the elderly. Copyright © 2015 AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Optimal selection and placement of green infrastructure to reduce impacts of land use change and climate change on hydrology and water quality: An application to the Trail Creek Watershed, Indiana.

PubMed

Liu, Yaoze; Theller, Lawrence O; Pijanowski, Bryan C; Engel, Bernard A

2016-05-15

The adverse impacts of urbanization and climate change on hydrology and water quality can be mitigated by applying green infrastructure practices. In this study, the impacts of land use change and climate change on hydrology and water quality in the 153.2 km(2) Trail Creek watershed located in northwest Indiana were estimated using the Long-Term Hydrologic Impact Assessment-Low Impact Development 2.1 (L-THIA-LID 2.1) model for the following environmental concerns: runoff volume, Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Total Phosphorous (TP), Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN), and Nitrate+Nitrite (NOx). Using a recent 2001 land use map and 2050 land use forecasts, we found that land use change resulted in increased runoff volume and pollutant loads (8.0% to 17.9% increase). Climate change reduced runoff and nonpoint source pollutant loads (5.6% to 10.2% reduction). The 2050 forecasted land use with current rainfall resulted in the largest runoff volume and pollutant loads. The optimal selection and placement of green infrastructure practices using L-THIA-LID 2.1 model were conducted. Costs of applying green infrastructure were estimated using the L-THIA-LID 2.1 model considering construction, maintenance, and opportunity costs. To attain the same runoff volume and pollutant loads as in 2001 land uses for 2050 land uses, the runoff volume, TSS, TP, TKN, and NOx for 2050 needed to be reduced by 10.8%, 14.4%, 13.1%, 15.2%, and 9.0%, respectively. The corresponding annual costs of implementing green infrastructure to achieve the goals were $2.1, $0.8, $1.6, $1.9, and $0.8 million, respectively. Annual costs of reducing 2050 runoff volume/pollutant loads were estimated, and results show green infrastructure annual cost greatly increased for larger reductions in runoff volume and pollutant loads. During optimization, the most cost-efficient green infrastructure practices were selected and implementation levels increased for greater reductions of runoff and nonpoint source pollutants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Translation of the Sexual Quality of Life–Male Questionnaire

PubMed Central

Maasoumi, Raziyeh; Mokarami, Hamidreza; Nazifi, Morteza; Stallones, Lorann; Taban, Abrahim; Yazdani Aval, Mohsen; Samimi, Kazem

2016-01-01

Sexual dysfunction has been demonstrated to be related to a poor quality of life. These dysfunctions are especially prevalent among men. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the Sexual Quality of Life–Male (SQOL-M), translated and adapted to measure sexual quality of life among Iranian men. Forward–backward procedures were applied in translating the original SQOL-M into Persian, and then the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the SQOL-M were studied. A total of 181 participants (23-60 years old) were included in the study. Validity was assessed by construct validity using confirmatory factor analysis, convergent validity, and content validity. The international index of erectile function (IIEF) and the work ability index were used to study the convergent validity. Reliability was evaluated through internal consistency and test–retest reliability analyses. The results from confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a one-factor solution for the Persian version of the SQOL-M. Content validity of the translated measure was endorsed by 10 specialists. Pearson correlations indicated that work ability index score, dimensions of the IIEF, and the IIEF total score were positively correlated with the Persian version of the SQOL-M (p < .001). Reliability evaluation indicated a high internal consistency and test–retest reliability. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficients were .96 and .95, respectively. Results indicated that the Persian version of the SQOL-M has good to excellent psychometric properties and can be used to assess the sexual quality of life among Iranian men. PMID:26856758

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Translation of the Sexual Quality of Life-Male Questionnaire.

PubMed

Maasoumi, Raziyeh; Mokarami, Hamidreza; Nazifi, Morteza; Stallones, Lorann; Taban, Abrahim; Yazdani Aval, Mohsen; Samimi, Kazem

2017-05-01

Sexual dysfunction has been demonstrated to be related to a poor quality of life. These dysfunctions are especially prevalent among men. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the Sexual Quality of Life-Male (SQOL-M), translated and adapted to measure sexual quality of life among Iranian men. Forward-backward procedures were applied in translating the original SQOL-M into Persian, and then the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the SQOL-M were studied. A total of 181 participants (23-60 years old) were included in the study. Validity was assessed by construct validity using confirmatory factor analysis, convergent validity, and content validity. The international index of erectile function (IIEF) and the work ability index were used to study the convergent validity. Reliability was evaluated through internal consistency and test-retest reliability analyses. The results from confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a one-factor solution for the Persian version of the SQOL-M. Content validity of the translated measure was endorsed by 10 specialists. Pearson correlations indicated that work ability index score, dimensions of the IIEF, and the IIEF total score were positively correlated with the Persian version of the SQOL-M ( p < .001). Reliability evaluation indicated a high internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficients were .96 and .95, respectively. Results indicated that the Persian version of the SQOL-M has good to excellent psychometric properties and can be used to assess the sexual quality of life among Iranian men.

Effect of Shift Work on Sleep, Health, and Quality of Life of Health-care Workers.

PubMed

Nena, Evangelia; Katsaouni, Maria; Steiropoulos, Paschalis; Theodorou, Evangelos; Constantinidis, Theodoros C; Tripsianis, Grigorios

2018-01-01

Shift work is associated with sleep disruption, impaired quality of life, and is a risk factor for several health conditions. Aim of this study was to investigate the impact of shift work on sleep and quality of life of health-care workers (HCW). Tertiary University hospital in Greece. Cross-sectional study. Included were HCW, working either in an irregular shift system or exclusively in morning shifts. All participants answered the WHO-5 Well-Being Index (WHO-5) and a questionnaire on demographics and medical history. Shift workers filled the Shift Work Disorders Screening Questionnaire (SWDSQ). Descriptive statistics, Student's t -test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's r correlation coefficient, and multivariate stepwise linear regression analysis were applied. Included were 312 employees (87.9% females), 194 working in irregular shift system and 118 in morning shifts. Most shift-workers (58.2%) were somehow or totally dissatisfied with their sleep quality. Regression analysis revealed the following independent determinants for sleep impairment: parenthood ( P < 0.001), age 36-45 years ( P < 0.001), >3 night shifts/week ( P < 0.001), work >5 years in an irregular shift system ( P < 0.001). Diabetes mellitus was the most common medical condition reported by shift workers ( P = 0.008). Comparison between the two groups revealed a significantly impairment in WHO-5 total score, as well as in 4 of 5 of its items ( P < 0.001). Shift-work impairs quality of life, whereas its duration and frequency, along with age and family status of employees can have adverse effects on sleep.

Investigation into image quality difference between total variation and nonlinear sparsifying transform based compressed sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Jian; Kudo, Hiroyuki

2017-03-01

Compressed sensing (CS) is attracting growing concerns in sparse-view computed tomography (CT) image reconstruction. The most standard approach of CS is total variation (TV) minimization. However, images reconstructed by TV usually suffer from distortions, especially in reconstruction of practical CT images, in forms of patchy artifacts, improper serrate edges and loss of image textures. Most existing CS approaches including TV achieve image quality improvement by applying linear transforms to object image, but linear transforms usually fail to take discontinuities into account, such as edges and image textures, which is considered to be the key reason for image distortions. Actually, discussions on nonlinear filter based image processing has a long history, leading us to clarify that the nonlinear filters yield better results compared to linear filters in image processing task such as denoising. Median root prior was first utilized by Alenius as nonlinear transform in CT image reconstruction, with significant gains obtained. Subsequently, Zhang developed the application of nonlocal means-based CS. A fact is gradually becoming clear that the nonlinear transform based CS has superiority in improving image quality compared with the linear transform based CS. However, it has not been clearly concluded in any previous paper within the scope of our knowledge. In this work, we investigated the image quality differences between the conventional TV minimization and nonlinear sparsifying transform based CS, as well as image quality differences among different nonlinear sparisying transform based CSs in sparse-view CT image reconstruction. Additionally, we accelerated the implementation of nonlinear sparsifying transform based CS algorithm.

Imaging Total Stations - Modular and Integrated Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hauth, Stefan; Schlüter, Martin

2010-05-01

Keywords: 3D-Metrology, Engineering Geodesy, Digital Image Processing Initialized in 2009, the Institute for Spatial Information and Surveying Technology i3mainz, Mainz University of Applied Sciences, forces research towards modular concepts for imaging total stations. On the one hand, this research is driven by the successful setup of high precision imaging motor theodolites in the near past, on the other hand it is pushed by the actual introduction of integrated imaging total stations to the positioning market by the manufacturers Topcon and Trimble. Modular concepts for imaging total stations are manufacturer independent to a large extent and consist of a particular combination of accessory hardware, software and algorithmic procedures. The hardware part consists mainly of an interchangeable eyepiece adapter offering opportunities for digital imaging and motorized focus control. An easy assembly and disassembly in the field is possible allowing the user to switch between the classical and the imaging use of a robotic total station. The software part primarily has to ensure hardware control, but several level of algorithmic support might be added and have to be distinguished. Algorithmic procedures allow to reach several levels of calibration concerning the geometry of the external digital camera and the total station. We deliver insight in our recent developments and quality characteristics. Both the modular and the integrated approach seem to have its individual strengths and weaknesses. Therefore we expect that both approaches might point at different target applications. Our aim is a better understanding of appropriate applications for robotic imaging total stations. First results are presented. Stefan Hauth, Martin Schlüter i3mainz - Institut für Raumbezogene Informations- und Messtechnik FH Mainz University of Applied Sciences Lucy-Hillebrand-Straße 2, 55128 Mainz, Germany

Comprehensive analysis of chemical constituents in Xingxiong injection by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Guo, Long; Dou, Li-Li; Duan, Li; Liu, Ke; Bi, Zhi-Ming; Li, Ping; Liu, E-Hu

2015-09-01

Xingxiong injection (XXI) is a widely used Chinese herbal formula prepared by the folium ginkgo extract and ligustrazine for the treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Compared with the pharmacological studies, chemical analysis and quality control studies on this formula are relatively limited. In the present study, a high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-QTOF MS) method was applied to comprehensive analysis of constituents in XXI. According to the fragmentation rules and previous reports, thirty ginkgo flavonoids, four ginkgo terpene lactones, and one alkaloid were identified. A high performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (HPLC-QQQ MS) method was then applied to quantify ten major constituents in XXI. The method validation results indicated that the developed method had desirable specificity, linearity, precision and accuracy. The total contents of ginkgo flavonoids were about 22.05-25.51 μg·mL(-1) and the ginkgo terpene lactones amounts were about 4.41-8.70 μg·mL(-1) in six batches of XXI samples, respectively. Furthermore, cosine ratio algorithm and distance measurements were employed to evaluate the similarity of XXI samples, and the results demonstrated a high-quality consistency. This work could provide comprehensive information on the quality control of Xingxiong injection, which be helpful in the establishment of a rational quality control standard. Copyright © 2015 China Pharmaceutical University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The reliability and validity of cervical auscultation in the diagnosis of dysphagia: a systematic review.

PubMed

Lagarde, Marloes L J; Kamalski, Digna M A; van den Engel-Hoek, Lenie

2016-02-01

To systematically review the available evidence for the reliability and validity of cervical auscultation in diagnosing the several aspects of dysphagia in adults and children suffering from dysphagia. Medline (PubMed), Embase and the Cochrane Library databases. The systematic review was carried out applying the steps of the PRISMA-statement. The methodological quality of the included studies were evaluated using the Dutch 'Cochrane checklist for diagnostic accuracy studies'. A total of 90 articles were identified through the search strategy, and after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, six articles were included in this review. In the six studies, 197 patients were assessed with cervical auscultation. Two of the six articles were considered to be of 'good' quality and three studies were of 'moderate' quality. One article was excluded because of a 'poor' methodological quality. Sensitivity ranges from 23%-94% and specificity ranges from 50%-74%. Inter-rater reliability was 'poor' or 'fair' in all studies. The intra-rater reliability shows a wide variance among speech language therapists. In this systematic review, conflicting evidence is found for the validity of cervical auscultation. The reliability of cervical auscultation is insufficient when used as a stand-alone tool in the diagnosis of dysphagia in adults. There is no available evidence for the validity and reliability of cervical auscultation in children. Cervical auscultation should not be used as a stand-alone instrument to diagnose dysphagia. © The Author(s) 2015.

Effects of Moisture and Particle Size on Quantitative Determination of Total Organic Carbon (TOC) in Soils Using Near-Infrared Spectroscopy.

PubMed

Tamburini, Elena; Vincenzi, Fabio; Costa, Stefania; Mantovi, Paolo; Pedrini, Paola; Castaldelli, Giuseppe

2017-10-17

Near-Infrared Spectroscopy is a cost-effective and environmentally friendly technique that could represent an alternative to conventional soil analysis methods, including total organic carbon (TOC). Soil fertility and quality are usually measured by traditional methods that involve the use of hazardous and strong chemicals. The effects of physical soil characteristics, such as moisture content and particle size, on spectral signals could be of great interest in order to understand and optimize prediction capability and set up a robust and reliable calibration model, with the future perspective of being applied in the field. Spectra of 46 soil samples were collected. Soil samples were divided into three data sets: unprocessed, only dried and dried, ground and sieved, in order to evaluate the effects of moisture and particle size on spectral signals. Both separate and combined normalization methods including standard normal variate (SNV), multiplicative scatter correction (MSC) and normalization by closure (NCL), as well as smoothing using first and second derivatives (DV1 and DV2), were applied to a total of seven cases. Pretreatments for model optimization were designed and compared for each data set. The best combination of pretreatments was achieved by applying SNV and DV2 on partial least squares (PLS) modelling. There were no significant differences between the predictions using the three different data sets ( p < 0.05). Finally, a unique database including all three data sets was built to include all the sources of sample variability that were tested and used for final prediction. External validation of TOC was carried out on 16 unknown soil samples to evaluate the predictive ability of the final combined calibration model. Hence, we demonstrate that sample preprocessing has minor influence on the quality of near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) predictions, laying the ground for a direct and fast in situ application of the method. Data can be acquired outside the laboratory since the method is simple and does not need more than a simple band ratio of the spectra.

Multivariate Meta-Analysis of Preference-Based Quality of Life Values in Coronary Heart Disease.

PubMed

Stevanović, Jelena; Pechlivanoglou, Petros; Kampinga, Marthe A; Krabbe, Paul F M; Postma, Maarten J

2016-01-01

There are numerous health-related quality of life (HRQol) measurements used in coronary heart disease (CHD) in the literature. However, only values assessed with preference-based instruments can be directly applied in a cost-utility analysis (CUA). To summarize and synthesize instrument-specific preference-based values in CHD and the underlying disease-subgroups, stable angina and post-acute coronary syndrome (post-ACS), for developed countries, while accounting for study-level characteristics, and within- and between-study correlation. A systematic review was conducted to identify studies reporting preference-based values in CHD. A multivariate meta-analysis was applied to synthesize the HRQoL values. Meta-regression analyses examined the effect of study level covariates age, publication year, prevalence of diabetes and gender. A total of 40 studies providing preference-based values were detected. Synthesized estimates of HRQoL in post-ACS ranged from 0.64 (Quality of Well-Being) to 0.92 (EuroQol European"tariff"), while in stable angina they ranged from 0.64 (Short form 6D) to 0.89 (Standard Gamble). Similar findings were observed in estimates applying to general CHD. No significant improvement in model fit was found after adjusting for study-level covariates. Large between-study heterogeneity was observed in all the models investigated. The main finding of our study is the presence of large heterogeneity both within and between instrument-specific HRQoL values. Current economic models in CHD ignore this between-study heterogeneity. Multivariate meta-analysis can quantify this heterogeneity and offers the means for uncertainty around HRQoL values to be translated to uncertainty in CUAs.

Evaluation of treated sewage reuse potential and membrane-based water reuse technology for the Bangkok Metropolitan area.

PubMed

Chiemchaisri, Chart; Chiemchaisri, Wilai; Prasertkulsak, Sirilak; Hamjinda, Nutta Sangnarin; Kootatep, Thammarat; Itonaga, Takanori; Yamamoto, Kazuo

2015-01-01

Only 3.4% of total water use in the Bangkok Metropolitan area is reused treated sewage. This study anticipates that further treated-sewage reuse in industrial sectors, commercial buildings and public parks, in addition to present in-plant and street cleaning purposes, would increase total water reuse to about 10%. New water reuse technologies using membrane bioreactor (MBR) and microfiltration (MF) as tertiary treatment were implemented to assess their potential for their application in the Bangkok Metropolitan area. The MBR was applied to the treatment of raw sewage in a central treatment plant of the Bangkok Metropolitan area. The MF membrane was used for polishing the effluent of the treatment plant. The results show the quality of treated water from MBR and tertiary MF treatment could meet stringent water reuse quality standard in terms of biochemical oxygen demand, suspended solids and biological parameters. Constant permeate flux of the membrane was achieved over long-term operation, during which inorganic fouling was observed. This is due to the fact that incoming sewage contains a considerable amount of inorganic constituents contributed from storm water and street inlet in the combined sewerage systems. The total cost of the MBR for sewage treatment and production of reuse water is estimated to be about USD1.10/m3.

Water quality assessment and hydrochemical characterization of Zamzam groundwater, Saudi Arabia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Barakah, Fahad N.; Al-jassas, Abdurahman M.; Aly, Anwar A.

2017-11-01

This study focuses on chemical and microbial analyses of 50 Zamzam water samples, Saudi Arabia. The soluble ions, trace elements, total colony counts, total coliform group, and E. coli were determined and compared with WHO standards. The obtained results indicated that the dissolved salts, soluble cations and anions, Pb, Cd, As, Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Fe, Mn, Cr, PO4 3-, NO2 -, Br-, F-, NH4 +, and Li+, were within permissible limits for all samples. Yet, 2% of waters contain NO3 - at slightly high concentration. The water quality index (WQI) reveals that 94% of the samples were excellent for drinking (class I). While the remaining was unsuitable due to total coliform group contamination "class (V)". Durov diagram suggest no clear facies and dominant water type can be noted. It indicates mixing processes of two or more different facies might be occurring in the groundwater system. All studied waters were undersaturated with respect to halite, gypsum, fluorite, and anhydrite. These minerals tend to dissolve and increase water salinity. A direct relationship between Zamzam water salinity and rainfall is recorded. The water salinity fluctuated between 4500 mg L-1 (year 1950) and 500 mg L-1 (year 2015) based on rainfall extent. The approach applied can be used to similar groundwater worldwide.

Effect of cassava starch-based edible coating incorporated with lemongrass essential oil on the quality of papaya MJ9

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Praseptiangga, D.; Utami, R.; Khasanah, L. U.; Evirananda, I. P.; Kawiji

2017-02-01

Edible films and coatings have emerged as an alternative packaging in food applications and have received much attention due to their advantages. The incorporation of essential oils in film matrices to give antimicrobial properties had been observed recently, and could be used as promising preservation technology. In this study, cassava starch-based edible coating incorporated with lemongrass essential oil (1%) was applied by spraying and dipping methods to preserve papaya MJ9 during storage at room temperature. The quality of papaya MJ9 was analyzed based on its physicochemical and microbiological properties. The addition of lemongrass essential oil (1%) significantly inhibited the microbial growth on papaya MJ9 by reducing the value of total yeast and mold as compared to the control. This study also showed that for parameters of weight loss, total soluble solid, vitamin C, and total titratable acid, papaya MJ9 with cassava starch-based edible coating incorporated with lemongrass essential oil (1%) had the lower values than control, however, they had the higher value than control on firmness parameter. These results indicate that cassava starch-based edible coating incorporated with lemongrass essential oil (1%) can be used as an alternative preservation for papaya MJ9.

Rapid quantification of multi-components in alcohol precipitation liquid of Codonopsis Radix using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS).

PubMed

Luo, Yu; Li, Wen-Long; Huang, Wen-Hua; Liu, Xue-Hua; Song, Yan-Gang; Qu, Hai-Bin

2017-05-01

A near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) approach was established for quality control of the alcohol precipitation liquid in the manufacture of Codonopsis Radix. By applying NIRS with multivariate analysis, it was possible to build variation into the calibration sample set, and the Plackett-Burman design, Box-Behnken design, and a concentrating-diluting method were used to obtain the sample set covered with sufficient fluctuation of process parameters and extended concentration information. NIR data were calibrated to predict the four quality indicators using partial least squares regression (PLSR). In the four calibration models, the root mean squares errors of prediction (RMSEPs) were 1.22 μg/ml, 10.5 μg/ml, 1.43 μg/ml, and 0.433% for lobetyolin, total flavonoids, pigments, and total solid contents, respectively. The results indicated that multi-components quantification of the alcohol precipitation liquid of Codonopsis Radix could be achieved with an NIRS-based method, which offers a useful tool for real-time release testing (RTRT) of intermediates in the manufacture of Codonopsis Radix.

Nutrition Economics: How to Eat Better for Less.

PubMed

Drewnowski, Adam

2015-01-01

Food prices and diet costs contribute to socioeconomic disparities in diet quality and health. Lower-cost diets provide ample calories but lack essential nutrients. Nutrition economics can remedy health disparities by helping to identify food patterns that are nutrient-rich, affordable, and appealing. First, nutrient profiling models--such as the Nutrient Rich Food (NRF) family of indices--are able to separate foods that are energy-dense from those that are nutrient-rich. Whereas energy-dense foods contain more calories than nutrients, nutrient-rich foods contain more nutrients than calories. Second, new value metrics have identified affordable healthy foods, based on nutrients per unit cost. Third, these methods have now been applied to the analyses of individual foods and beverages, meals, menus, and the total diet. The Healthy Eating Index (HEI), based on compliance with dietary guidelines, was the principal measure of total diet quality. Although healthier diets did generally cost more, some population subgroups managed to obtain nutrient-dense diets at a lower cost. Being able to create affordable, healthy food patterns on limited budgets is an example of nutrition resilience.

Postharvest shelf-life extension of pink guavas (Psidium guajava L.) using HPMC-based edible surface coatings.

PubMed

Vishwasrao, Chandrahas; Ananthanarayan, Laxmi

2016-04-01

Psidium guajava L. var. 'Lalit' is a perishable fruit with delicate skin which is prone to damage. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of edible coating made up of hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose and palm oil on ripening of guava. Coating solution was applied over fruits and coated fruits were stored at 24 ± 1 °C and 65 ± 5%RH. Changes in fruit colour, texture softening, respiration rate, weight loss, ascorbic acid content, soluble solids, titrable acidity, chlorophyll content, total reducing sugars, total phenolic content were studied during post-harvest ripening. Fruits coated with 1 % of hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose and 0.3 % of palm oil showed significant delay in weight loss, fruit firmness as well as colour change (p < 0.05). Coating delayed the enzyme activities of peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase of the fruit. Results suggest that overall quality of coated fruit was maintained by edible coating formulation extending the shelf life of fruit up to 12 days with appreciable retention of all quality parameters tested.

Remote Sensing of Water Quality in Multipurpose Reservoirs: Case Study Applications in Indonesia, Mexico, and Uruguay

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miralles-Wilhelm, F.; Serrat-Capdevila, A.; Rodriguez, D.

2017-12-01

This research is focused on development of remote sensing methods to assess surface water pollution issues, particularly in multipurpose reservoirs. Three case study applications are presented to comparatively analyze remote sensing techniquesforo detection of nutrient related pollution, i.e., Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Chlorophyll, as this is a major water quality issue that has been identified in terms of pollution of major water sources around the country. This assessment will contribute to a better understanding of options for nutrient remote sensing capabilities and needs and assist water agencies in identifying the appropriate remote sensing tools and devise an application strategy to provide information needed to support decision-making regarding the targeting and monitoring of nutrient pollution prevention and mitigation measures. A detailed review of the water quality data available from ground based measurements was conducted in order to determine their suitability for a case study application of remote sensing. In the first case study, the Valle de Bravo reservoir in Mexico City reservoir offers a larger database of water quality which may be used to better calibrate and validate the algorithms required to obtain water quality data from remote sensing raw data. In the second case study application, the relatively data scarce Lake Toba in Indonesia can be useful to illustrate the value added of remote sensing data in locations where water quality data is deficient or inexistent. The third case study in the Paso Severino reservoir in Uruguay offers a combination of data scarcity and persistent development of harmful algae blooms. Landsat-TM data was obteined for the 3 study sites and algorithms for three key water quality parameters that are related to nutrient pollution: Chlorophyll-a, Total Nitrogen, and Total Phosphorus were calibrated and validated at the study sites. The three case study applications were developed into capacity building/training workshops for water resources students, applied scientists, practitioners, reservoir and water quality managers, and other interested stakeholders.

Application of Six Sigma Model to Evaluate the Analytical Quality of Four HbA1c Analyzers.

PubMed

Maesa, Jos Eacute M; Fern Aacute Ndez-Riejos, Patricia; S Aacute Nchez-Mora, Catalina; Toro-Crespo, Mar Iacute A De; Gonz Aacute Lez-Rodriguez, Concepci Oacute N

2017-01-01

The Six Sigma Model is a global quality management system applicable to the determination of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c). In addition, this model can ensure the three characteristics influencing the patient risk: the correct performance of the analytical method with low inaccuracy and bias, the quality control strategy used by the laboratory, and the necessary quality of the analyte. The aim of this study is to use the Six Sigma Model for evaluating quality criteria in the determination of glycated hemoglobin HbA1c and its application to assess four different HbA1c analyzers. Four HbA1c analyzers were evaluated: HA-8180V®, D-100®, G8®, and Variant II Turbo®. For 20 consecutive days, two levels of quality control (high and low) provided by the manufacturers were measured in each of the instruments. Imprecision (CV), bias, and Sigma values (σ) were calculated with the data obtained and a method decision chart was developed considering a range of quality requirements (allowable total error, TEa). For a TEa = 3%, HA-8180V = 1.54 σ, D-100 = 1.63 σ, G8 = 2.20 σ, and Variant II Turbo = -0.08 σ. For a TEa = 4%, HA-8180V = 2.34 σ, D-100 = 2.32 σ, G8 = 3.74 σ, and Variant II Turbo = 0.16 σ. For a TEa = 10%, HA8180V = 7.12 σ, D-100 = 6.46 σ, G8 = 13.0 σ, and Variant II Turbo = 1.56 σ. Applying the Stockholm consensus and its subsequent Milan review to the results: the maximum level in quality requirements for HbA1c is an allowable total error (TEa) = 3%, G8 is located in region 2 σ (2.20), which is a poor result, and HA-8180V and D-100 are both in region 1 σ (1.54 and 1.63, respectively), which is an unacceptable analytical performance.

Chilean patients’ perception of oral health-related quality of life after third molar surgery

PubMed Central

Aravena, Pedro Christian; Delgado, Felipe; Olave, Hugo; Ulloa-Marin, Carolina; Perez-Rojas, Francisco

2016-01-01

Objective To describe the perception of the quality of life in oral health based on the Health-Related Quality of Life instrument in its Spanish version (HRQOL-sp) in Chilean patients with third molar extraction surgery. Patients and methods A cross-sectional study. The HRQOL-sp was administered to dental patients at the Public Hospital in Rio Bueno in southern Chile treated for unilateral third molar extraction between March and June 2014. The instrument was applied by phone survey on the first, third, fifth, and seventh days after surgery. For the ordinal scale, the response was considered interference in the quality of life when patients selected the options “quite a bit of trouble” or “lots of trouble” for oral function and general activity; and selected complications-related signs and symptoms, a pain level score with a Verbal Rating Scale (range 0 to 7), and worst pain perceived. The patient’s sociodemographic data, type of surgery, and the quality of life level were analyzed according to the domains of the HRQOL-sp instrument. Results A total of 106 patients were selected (age: 20.4±7.39 years; 71.7% women) and a total of 127 extracted third molars. On the first day of follow-up, most patients reported interference in their quality of life. The main problems were difficulty opening the mouth (50.94%) and swelling (83.02%). The worst symptom perceived was “bad breath” (>31%) and the worst pain felt was a mean of 4.31±1.62 on the Verbal Rating Scale. All items gradually reduced until the seventh day. Conclusion The HRQOL-sp revealed substantial interference in the quality of life on the first postoperative day. It is suggested that the risk factors associated with quality of life be analyzed and the instrument in Spanish be validated. PMID:27660421

Total Quality Management (TQM) Bibliography

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-04-01

GTE FIE COPY DTIC c" ECTE 8JUL 25 1990u TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) BIBLIOGRAPHY APRIL-1990 Jointly supported by __’__________-_________ Jointly...Arsenal, AL 35898-5241 1I. TITLE (Include Security Classification) TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) BIBL IRAPHY APRIL-1990 12. PERSONAL AUTHOR(S) Knott...implementation of the concept of total quality management (TQM). The selected coverage includes books, periodical articles, conference papers and reports. Coded

Quality indicators for hip fracture care, a systematic review.

PubMed

Voeten, S C; Krijnen, P; Voeten, D M; Hegeman, J H; Wouters, M W J M; Schipper, I B

2018-05-17

Quality indicators are used to measure quality of care and enable benchmarking. An overview of all existing hip fracture quality indicators is lacking. The primary aim was to identify quality indicators for hip fracture care reported in literature, hip fracture audits, and guidelines. The secondary aim was to compose a set of methodologically sound quality indicators for the evaluation of hip fracture care in clinical practice. A literature search according to the PRISMA guidelines and an internet search were performed to identify hip fracture quality indicators. The indicators were subdivided into process, structure, and outcome indicators. The methodological quality of the indicators was judged using the Appraisal of Indicators through Research and Evaluation (AIRE) instrument. For structure and process indicators, the construct validity was assessed. Sixteen publications, nine audits and five guidelines were included. In total, 97 unique quality indicators were found: 9 structure, 63 process, and 25 outcome indicators. Since detailed methodological information about the indicators was lacking, the AIRE instrument could not be applied. Seven indicators correlated with an outcome measure. A set of nine quality indicators was extracted from the literature, audits, and guidelines. Many quality indicators are described and used. Not all of them correlate with outcomes of care and have been assessed methodologically. As methodological evidence is lacking, we recommend the extracted set of nine indicators to be used as the starting point for further clinical research. Future research should focus on assessing the clinimetric properties of the existing quality indicators.

Developing a Total Quality Improvement Course for the Preparation of Technical-Management Personnel.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zargari, Ahmad

1997-01-01

Presents information about the need for, planning, and implementation of a total quality improvement course for undergraduate technology education students. The course involves the study of total quality concepts and their impact on the quality and competitiveness of industrial products. (JOW)

Office-Based Intracordal Hyaluronate Injections Improve Quality of Life in Thoracic-Surgery-Related Unilateral Vocal Fold Paralysis.

PubMed

Fang, Tuan-Jen; Hsin, Li-Jen; Chung, Hsiu-Feng; Chiang, Hui-Chen; Li, Hsueh-Yu; Wong, Alice M K; Pei, Yu-Chen

2015-10-01

Thoracic-surgery-related unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) may cause severe morbidity and can cause profound functional impairment and psychosocial stress in patients with pre-existing thoracic diseases. In-office intracordal hyaluronate (HA) injections have recently been applied to improve voice and quality of life in patients with vocal incompetence, but their effect on thoracic-surgery-related UVFP remains inconclusive. We therefore conducted a prospective study to clarify the effect of early HA injection on voice and quality of life in patients with thoracic-surgery-related UVFP. Patients with UVFP within 3 months after thoracic surgery who received office-based HA injection were recruited. Quantitative laryngeal electromyography, videolaryngostroboscopy, voice-related life quality (voice outcome survey), laboratory voice analysis, and health-related quality of life (SF-36) were evaluated at baseline, and at 1 month postinjection. A total of 104 consecutive patients accepted office-based HA intracordal injection during the study period, 34 of whom were treated in relation to thoracic surgery and were eligible for inclusion. Voice-related life quality, voice laboratory analysis, and most generic quality of life domains were significantly improved at 1 month after in-office HA intracordal injection. No HA-related complications were reported. Single office-based HA intracordal injection is a safe and effective treatment for thoracic-surgery-related UVFP, resulting in immediate improvements in patient quality of life, voice quality, and swallowing ability.

Effect of educational program on quality of life of patients with heart failure: a randomized clinical trial.

PubMed

Lakdizaji, Sima; Hassankhni, Hadi; Mohajjel Agdam, Alireza; Khajegodary, Mohammad; Salehi, Rezvanieh

2013-03-01

Heart failure is one of the most common cardiovascular diseases which decrease the quality of life. Most of the factors influencing the quality of life can be modified with educational interventions. Therefore, this study examined the impact of a continuous training program on quality of life of patients with heart failure. This randomized clinical trial study was conducted during May to August 2011. Forty four participants with heart failure referred to Shahid Madani's polyclinics of Tabriz were selected through convenient sampling method and were randomly allocated to two groups. The intervention group (n = 22) received ongoing training including one-to-one teaching, counseling sessions and phone calls over 3 months. The control group (n = 22) received routine care program. Data on quality of life was collected using the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire at baseline as well as three months later. The statistical tests showed significant differences in the physical, emotional dimensions and total quality of life in intervention group. But in control group, no significant differences were obtained. There was not any significant association in demographic characteristics and quality of life. Ongoing training programs can be effective in improving quality of life of patients with heart failure. Hence applying ongoing educational program as a non-pharmacological intervention can help to improve the quality of life of these patients.

Regional interpretation of water-quality monitoring data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, Richard A.; Schwarz, Gregory E.; Alexander, Richard B.

1997-01-01

We describe a method for using spatially referenced regressions of contaminant transport on watershed attributes (SPARROW) in regional water-quality assessment. The method is designed to reduce the problems of data interpretation caused by sparse sampling, network bias, and basin heterogeneity. The regression equation relates measured transport rates in streams to spatially referenced descriptors of pollution sources and land-surface and stream-channel characteristics. Regression models of total phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN) transport are constructed for a region defined as the nontidal conterminous United States. Observed TN and TP transport rates are derived from water-quality records for 414 stations in the National Stream Quality Accounting Network. Nutrient sources identified in the equations include point sources, applied fertilizer, livestock waste, nonagricultural land, and atmospheric deposition (TN only). Surface characteristics found to be significant predictors of land-water delivery include soil permeability, stream density, and temperature (TN only). Estimated instream decay coefficients for the two contaminants decrease monotonically with increasing stream size. TP transport is found to be significantly reduced by reservoir retention. Spatial referencing of basin attributes in relation to the stream channel network greatly increases their statistical significance and model accuracy. The method is used to estimate the proportion of watersheds in the conterminous United States (i.e., hydrologic cataloging units) with outflow TP concentrations less than the criterion of 0.1 mg/L, and to classify cataloging units according to local TN yield (kg/km2/yr).

Enhancing antioxidant activity, microbial and sensory quality of mango (Mangifera indica L.) juice by γ-irradiation and its in vitro radioprotective potential.

PubMed

Naresh, Kondapalli; Varakumar, Sadineni; Variyar, Prasad Shekhar; Sharma, Arun; Reddy, Obulam Vijaya Sarathi

2015-07-01

Gamma irradiation is an effective method currently being used for microbial decontamination and insect disinfestations of foods. In the present study, mango (Mangifera indica L.) juice was irradiated at doses of 0, 1.0, 3.0 and 5.0 kGy and microbial load, total polyphenols, flavonoids, ascorbic acid content, antioxidant activities, colour and sensory properties were evaluated immediately after irradiation and also during storage. Microbiological assay of the fresh and stored mango juice showed better quality after γ-irradiation. The total polyphenols and flavonoids were significantly (p < 0.05) increased while the ascorbic acid content decreased with the irradiation doses applied. As a result of γ-irradiation, a significant increment in gallic, syringic and chlorogenic acids and a significant reduction in ferulic and synapic acids were noted when analyzed by HPLC. In vitro antioxidant potentials were measured using DPPH, FRAP and NO scavenging assays; the results showed significant enhancement in the activities after irradiation, that correlated well with the increase in phenolic and flavonoid content. γ-irradiation improved the colour of mango juice without any adverse changes in the sensory qualities. Significant in vitro plasmid DNA protection was observed in the presence of mango juice against radiation induced damage, even at the dose of 5 kGy. This study confirmed the potential of γ-irradiation as a method for microbial decontamination and improving the quality of the mango juice without compromising on the sensory attributes.

Managed aquifer recharge of treated wastewater: water quality changes resulting from infiltration through the vadose zone.

PubMed

Bekele, Elise; Toze, Simon; Patterson, Bradley; Higginson, Simon

2011-11-01

Secondary treated wastewater was infiltrated through a 9 m-thick calcareous vadose zone during a 39 month managed aquifer recharge (MAR) field trial to determine potential improvements in the recycled water quality. The water quality improvements of the recycled water were based on changes in the chemistry and microbiology of (i) the recycled water prior to infiltration relative to (ii) groundwater immediately down-gradient from the infiltration gallery. Changes in the average concentrations of several constituents in the recycled water were identified with reductions of 30% for phosphorous, 66% for fluoride, 62% for iron and 51% for total organic carbon when the secondary treated wastewater was infiltrated at an applied rate of 17.5 L per minute with a residence time of approximately four days in the vadose zone and less than two days in the aquifer. Reductions were also noted for oxazepam and temazepam among the pharmaceuticals tested and for a range of microbial pathogens, but reductions were harder to quantify as their magnitudes varied over time. Total nitrogen and carbamazepine persisted in groundwater down-gradient from the infiltration galleries. Infiltration does potentially offer a range of water quality improvements over direct injection to the water table without passage through the unsaturated zone; however, additional treatment options for the non-potable water may still need to be considered, depending on the receiving environment or the end use of the recovered water. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Heat treatment as postharvest tool for improving quality in extra-early nectarines.

PubMed

Falagán, Natalia; Artés, Francisco; Aguayo, Encarna

2018-03-01

Extra-early nectarine cultivars such as 'VioWhite 5' could present a lack of organoleptic and nutritional quality. Heat treatments (HT) can be applied to improve their primary characteristics. In this experiment, control (non-treated), HT 1 (3 h; 45 °C) and HT 2 (2 h; 50 °C) were studied. Fruit were stored (10 days; 0 ± 0.5 °C; 90-95% RH) followed by a simulated retail sale period (3 days; 15 °C; 70-75% RH). HT fruit showed higher weight loss (2.76 ± 0.06% and 3.32 ± 0.01% for HT 1 and HT 2 , respectively; vs. 2.23 ± 0.14% for control) and lower firmness than control samples (28.88% and 21.67% less for HT 1 and HT 2 , respectively). HT treatments induced an increase in soluble solids content and a decrease in total acidity, which led to a better sensory quality. These changes were positively received by consumers. Total antioxidant capacity was enhanced by HT due to an increase in phenolic compound content. A higher enzymatic activity was found in pectin methylesterase and polygaracturonase in HT nectarines when compared to control. The application of HT on extra-early nectarine cv. demonstrated a strong potential to improve consumption quality in the industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Partnerships for Quality: A Statewide Plan for Developing and Implementing a Total Quality Curriculum Delivered through Oregon's Community Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oregon State Economic Development Dept., Salem.

The Oregon Advanced Technology Consortium (OATC) created the Partnerships for Quality Project (PQP) to improve Oregon's community colleges by developing a total quality curriculum (TQC) based on the beliefs and practices of total quality management (TQM). This report summarizes the recommendations of the PQP and presents a plan of action for the…

Sampling limits for electron tomography with sparsity-exploiting reconstructions.

PubMed

Jiang, Yi; Padgett, Elliot; Hovden, Robert; Muller, David A

2018-03-01

Electron tomography (ET) has become a standard technique for 3D characterization of materials at the nano-scale. Traditional reconstruction algorithms such as weighted back projection suffer from disruptive artifacts with insufficient projections. Popularized by compressed sensing, sparsity-exploiting algorithms have been applied to experimental ET data and show promise for improving reconstruction quality or reducing the total beam dose applied to a specimen. Nevertheless, theoretical bounds for these methods have been less explored in the context of ET applications. Here, we perform numerical simulations to investigate performance of ℓ 1 -norm and total-variation (TV) minimization under various imaging conditions. From 36,100 different simulated structures, our results show specimens with more complex structures generally require more projections for exact reconstruction. However, once sufficient data is acquired, dividing the beam dose over more projections provides no improvements-analogous to the traditional dose-fraction theorem. Moreover, a limited tilt range of ±75° or less can result in distorting artifacts in sparsity-exploiting reconstructions. The influence of optimization parameters on reconstructions is also discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effects of ionizing energy treatment on the quality of ginseng products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, Joong-Ho; Bélanger, Jacqueline M. R.; Paré, J. R. Jocelyn

Pre-established doses were applied to Panax ginseng powders for determining the effects of γ-irradiation on the quality of samples from the microbiological, some physico-chemical and organoleptic points of view. Irradiation at 5 kGy was sufficient not only to reduce total bacterial counts (1.28 × 10 5/g) by about 3 orders of magnitude but to eliminate coliforms, yeast and molds during three months of storage at 30°C and 50-60% RH. An established dose of 5 kGy caused little change in pH, acidity, TBA number, pigments, color, and overall acceptability of the sample, however there was a significant change in color and appearance of the irradiated sample at 10 kGy where all microorganisms were destroyed.

A checklist of the aquatic invertebrates of the Delaware River Basin, 1990-2000

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bilger, Michael D.; Riva-Murray, Karen; Wall, Gretchen L.

2005-01-01

This paper details a compilation of aquatic-invertebrate taxa collected at 1,080 sites as part of 13 surface-water-quality studies completed by selected Federal, state, and local environmental agencies during 1990-2000, within the 32,893-km2 area of the Delaware River Basin. This checklist is intended to be a 'working list' of aquatic invertebrates that can be applied successfully to the calculation and interpretation of various biological estimators to determine the status of water quality and can be used as a foundation to document the current state of biodiversity. It is not intended as a comprehensive historical inventory of the literature or of private and public holdings. A total of 11 phyla comprising 20 classes, 46 orders, 196 families, 685 genera, and 835 species were recorded.

Comparative study: TQ and Lean Production ownership models in health services

PubMed Central

Eiro, Natalia Yuri; Torres-Junior, Alvair Silveira

2015-01-01

Objective: compare the application of Total Quality (TQ) models used in processes of a health service, cases of lean healthcare and literature from another institution that has also applied this model. Method: this is a qualitative research that was conducted through a descriptive case study. Results: through critical analysis of the institutions studied it was possible to make a comparison between the traditional quality approach checked in one case and the theoretical and practice lean production approach used in another case and the specifications are described below. Conclusion: the research identified that the lean model was better suited for people that work systemically and generate the flow. It also pointed towards some potential challenges in the introduction and implementation of lean methods in health. PMID:26487134

[Quality assurance and quality improvement. Personal experiences and intentions].

PubMed

Roche, B G; Sommer, C

1995-01-01

In may 1994 we were selected by the surgical Swiss association to make a study about quality in USA. During our travel we visited 3 types of institutions: Hospitals, National Institute of standard and Technology, Industry, Johnson & Johnson. We appreciate to compare 2 types of quality programs: Quality Assurance (QA) and Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI). In traditional healthcare circles, QA is the process established to meet external regulatory requirements and to assure that patient care is consistent with established standards. In a modern quality terms, QA outside of healthcare means designing a product or service, as well as controlling its production, so well that quality is inevitable. The ideas of W. Edward Deming is that there is never improvement just by inspection. He developed a theory based on 14 principles. A productive work is accomplished through processes. Understanding the variability of processes is a key to improve quality. Quality management sees each person in an organisation as part of one or more processes. The job of every worker is to receive the work of others, add value to that work, and supply it to the next person in the process. This is called the triple role the workers as customer, processor, and supplier. The main source of quality defects is problems in the process. The old assumption is that quality fails when people do the right thing wrong; the new assumption is that, more often, quality failures arise when people do the wrong think right. Exhortation, incentives and discipline of workers are unlikely to improve quality. If quality is failing when people do their jobs as designed, then exhorting them to do better is managerial nonsense. Modern quality theory is customer focused. Customers are identified internally and externally. The modern approach to quality is thoroughly grounded in scientific and statistical thinking. Like in medicine, the symptom is a defect in quality. The therapist of process must perform diagnostic test, formulate hypotheses of cause, test those hypotheses, apply remedies, and assess the effect of remedies. Total employee involvement is critical. A power comes from enabling all employees to become involved in quality improvement. A great advantage of CQI is the prevention orientation of the concept. The CQI permeated a collegial approach, people learn how to work together to improve. CQI is a time consuming procedure. During our travel we learned the definition of quality as the customer satisfaction. To build a CQI concept in employed time but all employed are involved in quality improvement. Applying CQI we could be able to refuse Quality control programs.

Historical trends in organochlorine compounds in river basins identified using sediment cores from reservoirs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Van Metre, P.C.; Callender, E.; Fuller, C.C.

1997-01-01

This study used chemical analyses of dated sediment cores from reservoirs to define historical trends in water quality in the influent river basins. This work applies techniques from paleolimnology to reservoirs, and in the process, highlights differences between sediment-core interpretations for reservoirs and natural lakes. Sediment cores were collected from six reservoirs in the central and southeastern United States, sectioned, and analyzed for 137Cs and organochlorine compounds. 137Cs analyses were used to demonstrate limited post-depositional mixing, to indicate sediment deposition dates, and to estimate sediment focusing factors. Relative lack of mixing, high sedimentation rates, and high focusing factors distinguish reservoir sediment cores from cores collected in natural lakes. Temporal trends in concentrations of PCBs, total DDT (DDT + DDD + DDE), and chlordane reflect historical use and regulation of these compounds and differences in land use between reservoir drainages. PCB and total DDT core burdens, normalized for sediment focusing, greatly exceed reported cumulative regional atmospheric fallout of PCBs and total DDT estimated using cores from peat hogs and natural lakes, indicating the dominance of fluvial inputs of both groups of compounds to the reservoirs.This study used chemical analyses of dated sediment cores from reservoirs to define historical trends in water quality in the influent river basins. This work applies techniques from paleolimnology to reservoirs, and in the process, highlights differences between sediment-core interpretations for reservoirs and natural lakes. Sediment cores were collected from six reservoirs in the central and southeastern United States, sectioned, and analyzed for 137Cs and organochlorine compounds. 137Cs analyses were used to demonstrate limited post-depositional mixing, to indicate sediment deposition dates, and to estimate sediment focusing factors. Relative lack of mixing, high sedimentation rates, and high focusing factors distinguish reservoir sediment cores from cores collected in natural lakes. Temporal trends in concentrations of PCBs, total DOT (DDT+DDD+DDE), and chlordane reflect historical use and regulation of these compounds and differences in land use between reservoir drainages. PCB and total DDT core burdens, normalized for sediment focusing, greatly exceed reported cumulative regional atmospheric fallout of PCBs and total DDT estimated using cores from peat bogs and natural lakes, indicating the dominance of fluvial inputs of both groups of compounds to the reservoirs.

[Analysis of the articles published in Chinese Journal of Applied Physiology between 2000 and 2006].

PubMed

Wang, Wei-Qiu; Pang, Xiang-Juan

2008-08-01

To analyze the characteristics of publications of Chinese Journal of Applied Physiology between 2000 and 2006, evaluate the academic level and the popularity of the issues, and supplying an evidence for the journal reform. With CNKI and manpower search, by use of literature metrology, a comprehensive analysis of the publications of Chinese Journal of Applied Physiology between 2000 and 2006 was made. The number of articles published form 2000 to 2006 in Chinese Journal of Applied Physiology was 968, The average number of each issue is 34.57, the average page of each article is 3.11, in the columns, the article about original articles was top of rank (66.22% of the total). In the quotation, the quotation increase year by year (100% in 2004-2006), the number of English quotation is very more (76.52% in average). In the time lag, the longest is 510 days, the shortest if 60 days, the average is 196.51 days. In the fund support, the level is increase by fund support, the article number by fund support is increase too, It is 97 in 2005. In the authors' professional positions and academic degrees, the authors' level is more and more higher. In the authors column, Beijing's author is the top of rank, has 162 persons (16.74% of the total). The Chinese Journal of Applied Physiology has published high quality articles. It is the one of the most important information resource for the physiological research and the most important medical journal.

Total Quality Management (TQM). Implementers Workshop

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-05-15

SHEE’T :s t’ii ,rrl DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE May 15, 1990 Lfl CN I TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) Implementers Workshop © Copyright 1990 Booz.Allen...must be continually performed in order to achieve successful TQM implementation. 1-5 = TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT Implementers Workshop Course Content...information, please refer to the student manual, Total Quality Management (TOM) Awareness Seminar, that was provided for the Awareness Course. You may

Improving Operational Readiness through Total Quality Management

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-06-21

DTIC AD-A236 611 EL CT F NAVAL WAR COLL GE C Newport, R. I. IMPROVING OPERATIONAL READINESS THROUGH TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT by Herb Westphal Defense...IMPROVING OPERATIONAL READINESS THROUGH TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) A Case Study: The Defense Mapping Agency Combat Support Center (DMACSC) initiated a...of the Defense Mapping Agency Combat Support Center’s (DMACSC) Total Quality Management (TQM) improvement methodology. This allows the reader to

Historical contributions of phosphorus from natural and agricultural sources and implications for stream water quality, Cheney Reservoir watershed, south-central Kansas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pope, Larry M.; Milligan, Chad R.; Mau, David Phillip

2002-01-01

An examination of soil cores collected from 43 nonagricultural coring sites in the Cheney Reservoir watershed of south-central Kansas was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey in September 1999. The cores were collected as part of an ongoing cooperative study with the city of Wichita, Kansas. The 43 sites (mostly cemeteries) were thought to have total phosphorus concentrations in the soil that are representative of natural conditions (unaffected by human activity). The purpose of this report is to present the analysis and evaluation of these soil cores, to quantify the phosphorus contributions to Cheney Reservoir from natural and agricultural sources, and to provide estimates of stream-water-quality response to natural concentrations of total phosphorus in the soil. Analysis of soil cores from the 43 sites produced natural concentrations of total phosphorus that ranged from 74 to 539 milligrams per kilogram with a median concentration of 245 milligrams per kilogram in 2-inch soil cores and from 50 to 409 milligrams per kilogram with a median concentration of 166 milligrams per kilogram in 8-inch soil cores. Natural concentrations of total phosphorus in soil were statistically larger in samples from coring sites in the eastern half of the watershed than in samples from coring sites in the western half of the watershed. This result partly explains a previously determined west-to-east increase in total phosphorus yields in streams of the Cheney Reservoir watershed. A comparison of total phosphorus concentrations in soil under natural conditions to the historical mean total phosphorus concentration in agriculturally enriched bottom sediment in Cheney Reservoir indicated that agricultural activities within the watershed have increased total phosphorus concentrations in watershed soil that is transported in streams to about 2.9 times natural concentrations. Retention efficiencies for phosphorus and sediment historically transported to Cheney Reservoir were calculated at 92 and 99 percent, respectively. Most of the phosphorus was retained in bottom sediment. Sediment accumulation in Cheney Reservoir was less than reservoir design-life specifications on the basis of the age of the reservoir. Estimates of mean total phosphorus concentrations for selected streams in the Cheney Reservoir watershed under natural concentrations of total phosphorus in soil and a historic set of watershed conditions indicate that water from two of the five streamflow sampling sites would not meet the total phosphorus water-quality goal of 0.10 milligram per liter established by the Cheney Reservoir Watershed Task Force Committee. These results imply that the water-quality goal for total phosphorus in some streams of the watershed may not be met simply by reducing the amount of phosphorus applied. Instead, meeting the goal could involve a combination of approaches-for example, reducing the agricultural distribution of phosphorus and implementing changes in watershed activities to mitigate phosphorus movement to surface water.

Assessing roadway contributions to stormwater flows, concentrations, and loads with the StreamStats application

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stonewall, Adam; Granato, Gregory E.; Haluska, Tana L.

2018-01-01

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and other state departments of transportation need quantitative information about the percentages of different land cover categories above any given stream crossing in the state to assess and address roadway contributions to water-quality impairments and resulting total maximum daily loads. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with ODOT and the FHWA, added roadway and land cover information to the online StreamStats application to facilitate analysis of stormwater runoff contributions from different land covers. Analysis of 25 delineated basins with drainage areas of about 100 mi2 indicates the diversity of land covers in the Willamette Valley, Oregon. On average, agricultural, developed, and undeveloped land covers comprise 15%, 2.3%, and 82% of these basin areas. On average, these basins contained about 10 mi of state highways and 222 mi of non-state roads. The Stochastic Empirical Loading and Dilution Model was used with available water-quality data to simulate long-term yields of total phosphorus from highways, non-highway roadways, and agricultural, developed, and undeveloped areas. These yields were applied to land cover areas obtained from StreamStats for the Willamette River above Wilsonville, Oregon. This analysis indicated that highway yields were larger than yields from other land covers because highway runoff concentrations were higher than other land covers and the highway is fully impervious. However, the total highway area was a fraction of the other land covers. Accordingly, highway runoff mitigation measures can be effective for managing water quality locally, they may have limited effect on achieving basin-wide stormwater reduction goals.

Defining Multiple Chronic Conditions for Quality Measurement.

PubMed

Drye, Elizabeth E; Altaf, Faseeha K; Lipska, Kasia J; Spatz, Erica S; Montague, Julia A; Bao, Haikun; Parzynski, Craig S; Ross, Joseph S; Bernheim, Susannah M; Krumholz, Harlan M; Lin, Zhenqiu

2018-02-01

Patients with multiple chronic conditions (MCCs) are a critical but undefined group for quality measurement. We present a generally applicable systematic approach to defining an MCC cohort of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries that we developed for a national quality measure, risk-standardized rates of unplanned admissions for Accountable Care Organizations. To define the MCC cohort we: (1) identified potential chronic conditions; (2) set criteria for cohort conditions based on MCC framework and measure concept; (3) applied the criteria informed by empirical analysis, experts, and the public; (4) described "broader" and "narrower" cohorts; and (5) selected final cohort with stakeholder input. Subjects were patients with chronic conditions. Participants included 21.8 million Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries in 2012 aged 65 years and above with ≥1 of 27 Medicare Chronic Condition Warehouse condition(s). In total, 10 chronic conditions were identified based on our criteria; 8 of these 10 were associated with notably increased admission risk when co-occurring. A broader cohort (2+ of the 8 conditions) included 4.9 million beneficiaries (23% of total cohort) with an admission rate of 70 per 100 person-years. It captured 53% of total admissions. The narrower cohort (3+ conditions) had 2.2 million beneficiaries (10%) with 100 admissions per 100 person-years and captured 32% of admissions. Most stakeholders viewed the broader cohort as best aligned with the measure concept. By systematically narrowing chronic conditions to those most relevant to the outcome and incorporating stakeholder input, we defined an MCC admission measure cohort supported by stakeholders. This approach can be used as a model for other MCC outcome measures.

Quality of life and ethics.

PubMed

Fumincelli, Laís; Mazzo, Alessandra; Martins, José Carlos Amado; Mendes, Isabel Amélia Costa

2017-01-01

In health, ethics is an essential aspect of practice and care and guarantees a better quality of life for patients and their caregivers. To outline a conceptual analysis of quality of life and ethics, identifying attributes, contexts and magnitudes for health. A qualitative design about quality of life and ethics in health, considering the evolutionary approach in order to analyse the concept. To collect the data, a search was done using the keywords ethic*, quality of life and health. After, in total, 152 studies were found, finalizing seven relevant studies for the proposed concept analysis. Of seven studies analysed, their main results were shown by means of antecedents, consequences and attributes of the concepts. The three final attributes that synthesize the concept of quality of life and ethics in health were highlighted: Ethics dilemmas and quality of life; Human ethics and quality of life; and Ethics of care and quality of life. In fact, the attributes and context clearly reveal that ethics and quality of life influence the ability to solve ethical dilemmas, guarantee human ethics in healthcare and impact ethics in healthcare for the production of effective health policies and care that encompasses professional quality of life as well. The magnitude of ethical knowledge in each professional discipline permits cultivating a solidary attitude and developing the willingness to improve healthcare. The right to access, dignity and respect in care delivery are rooted in behaviours and are spontaneously applied in practice to the extent that they play an ethical role.

Top down arsenic uncertainty measurement in water and sediments from Guarapiranga dam (Brazil)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faustino, M. G.; Lange, C. N.; Monteiro, L. R.; Furusawa, H. A.; Marques, J. R.; Stellato, T. B.; Soares, S. M. V.; da Silva, T. B. S. C.; da Silva, D. B.; Cotrim, M. E. B.; Pires, M. A. F.

2018-03-01

Total arsenic measurements assessment regarding legal threshold demands more than average and standard deviation approach. In this way, analytical measurement uncertainty evaluation was conducted in order to comply with legal requirements and to allow the balance of arsenic in both water and sediment compartments. A top-down approach for measurement uncertainties was applied to evaluate arsenic concentrations in water and sediments from Guarapiranga dam (São Paulo, Brazil). Laboratory quality control and arsenic interlaboratory tests data were used in this approach to estimate the uncertainties associated with the methodology.

PSD Applicability of SO2 Emissions from Incineration of Total Reduced Sulfur

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This document may be of assistance in applying the New Source Review (NSR) air permitting regulations including the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) requirements. This document is part of the NSR Policy and Guidance Database. Some documents in the database are a scanned or retyped version of a paper photocopy of the original. Although we have taken considerable effort to quality assure the documents, some may contain typographical errors. Contact the office that issued the document if you need a copy of the original.

TQM (Total Quality Management) SPARC (Special Process Action Review Committees) Handbook

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-08-01

This document describes the techniques used to support and guide the Special Process Action Review Committees for accomplishing their goals for Total Quality Management (TQM). It includes concepts and definitions, checklists, sample formats, and assessment criteria. Keywords: Continuous process improvement; Logistics information; Process analysis; Quality control; Quality assurance; Total Quality Management ; Statistical processes; Management Planning and control; Management training; Management information systems.

Measurement of Health Care Quality in Atopic Dermatitis - Development and Application of a Set of Quality Indicators.

PubMed

Steinke, S; Beikert, F C; Langenbruch, A; Fölster-Holst, R; Ring, J; Schmitt, J; Werfel, T; Hintzen, S; Franzke, N; Augustin, M

2018-05-15

Quality indicators are essential tools for the assessment of health care, in particular for guideline-based procedures. 1) Development of a set of indicators for the evaluation of process and outcomes quality in atopic dermatitis (AD) care. 2) Application of the indicators to a cross-sectional study and creation of a global process quality index. An expert committee consisting of 10 members of the German guideline group on atopic dermatitis condensed potential quality indicators to a final set of 5 outcomes quality and 12 process quality indicators using a Delphi panel. The outcomes quality and 7 resp. 8 process quality indicators were retrospectively applied to a nationwide study on 1,678 patients with atopic dermatitis (AtopicHealth). Each individual process quality indicator score was then summed up to a global index (ranges from 0 (no quality achieved) to 100 (full quality achieved)) displaying the quality of health care. In total, the global process quality index revealed a median value of 62.5 and did not or only slightly correlate to outcome indicators as the median SCORAD (SCORing Atopic Dermatitis; rp =0.08), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI; rp = 0.256), and Patient Benefit Index (PBI; rp = -0.151). Process quality of AD care is moderate to good. The health care process quality index does not substantially correlate to the health status of AD patients measured by 5 different outcomes quality indicators. Further research should include the investigation of reliability, responsiveness, and feasibility of the proposed quality indicators for AD. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Quality of medicines commonly used in the treatment of soil transmitted helminths and giardia in ethiopia: a nationwide survey.

PubMed

Suleman, Sultan; Zeleke, Gemechu; Deti, Habtewold; Mekonnen, Zeleke; Duchateau, Luc; Levecke, Bruno; Vercruysse, Jozef; D'Hondt, Matthias; Wynendaele, Evelien; De Spiegeleer, Bart

2014-12-01

The presence of poor quality medicines in the market is a global threat on public health, especially in developing countries. Therefore, we assessed the quality of two commonly used anthelminthic drugs [mebendazole (MEB) and albendazole (ALB)] and one antiprotozoal drug [tinidazole (TNZ)] in Ethiopia. A multilevel stratified random sampling, with as strata the different levels of supply chain system in Ethiopia, geographic areas and government/privately owned medicines outlets, was used to collect the drug samples using mystery shoppers. The three drugs (106 samples) were collected from 38 drug outlets (government/privately owned) in 7 major cities in Ethiopia between January and March 2012. All samples underwent visual and physical inspection for labeling and packaging before physico-chemical quality testing and evaluated based on individual monographs in Pharmacopoeias for identification, assay/content, dosage uniformity, dissolution, disintegration and friability. In addition, quality risk was analyzed using failure mode effect analysis (FMEA) and a risk priority number (RPN) was assigned to each quality attribute. A clinically rationalized desirability function was applied in quantification of the overall quality of each medicine. Overall, 45.3% (48/106) of the tested samples were substandard, i.e. not meeting the pharmacopoeial quality specifications claimed by their manufacturers. Assay was the quality attribute most often out-of-specification, with 29.2% (31/106) failure of the total samples. The highest failure was observed for MEB (19/42, 45.2%), followed by TNZ (10/39, 25.6%) and ALB (2/25, 8.0%). The risk analysis showed that assay (RPN = 512) is the most critical quality attribute, followed by dissolution (RPN = 336). Based on Derringer's desirability function, samples were classified into excellent (14/106,13%), good (24/106, 23%), acceptable (38/106, 36%%), low (29/106, 27%) and bad (1/106,1%) quality. This study evidenced that there is a relatively high prevalence of poor quality MEB, ALB and TNZ in Ethiopia: up to 45% if pharmacopoeial acceptance criteria are used in the traditional, dichotomous approach, and 28% if the new risk-based desirability approach was applied. The study identified assay as the most critical quality attributes. The country of origin was the most significant factor determining poor quality status of the investigated medicines in Ethiopia.

Quality of Medicines Commonly Used in the Treatment of Soil Transmitted Helminths and Giardia in Ethiopia: A Nationwide Survey

PubMed Central

Suleman, Sultan; Zeleke, Gemechu; Deti, Habtewold; Mekonnen, Zeleke; Duchateau, Luc; Levecke, Bruno; Vercruysse, Jozef; D'Hondt, Matthias; Wynendaele, Evelien; De Spiegeleer, Bart

2014-01-01

Background The presence of poor quality medicines in the market is a global threat on public health, especially in developing countries. Therefore, we assessed the quality of two commonly used anthelminthic drugs [mebendazole (MEB) and albendazole (ALB)] and one antiprotozoal drug [tinidazole (TNZ)] in Ethiopia. Methods/Principal Findings A multilevel stratified random sampling, with as strata the different levels of supply chain system in Ethiopia, geographic areas and government/privately owned medicines outlets, was used to collect the drug samples using mystery shoppers. The three drugs (106 samples) were collected from 38 drug outlets (government/privately owned) in 7 major cities in Ethiopia between January and March 2012. All samples underwent visual and physical inspection for labeling and packaging before physico-chemical quality testing and evaluated based on individual monographs in Pharmacopoeias for identification, assay/content, dosage uniformity, dissolution, disintegration and friability. In addition, quality risk was analyzed using failure mode effect analysis (FMEA) and a risk priority number (RPN) was assigned to each quality attribute. A clinically rationalized desirability function was applied in quantification of the overall quality of each medicine. Overall, 45.3% (48/106) of the tested samples were substandard, i.e. not meeting the pharmacopoeial quality specifications claimed by their manufacturers. Assay was the quality attribute most often out-of-specification, with 29.2% (31/106) failure of the total samples. The highest failure was observed for MEB (19/42, 45.2%), followed by TNZ (10/39, 25.6%) and ALB (2/25, 8.0%). The risk analysis showed that assay (RPN = 512) is the most critical quality attribute, followed by dissolution (RPN = 336). Based on Derringer's desirability function, samples were classified into excellent (14/106,13%), good (24/106, 23%), acceptable (38/106, 36%%), low (29/106, 27%) and bad (1/106,1%) quality. Conclusions/Significance This study evidenced that there is a relatively high prevalence of poor quality MEB, ALB and TNZ in Ethiopia: up to 45% if pharmacopoeial acceptance criteria are used in the traditional, dichotomous approach, and 28% if the new risk-based desirability approach was applied. The study identified assay as the most critical quality attributes. The country of origin was the most significant factor determining poor quality status of the investigated medicines in Ethiopia. PMID:25473966

Improvement of nutritional quality of greenhouse-grown lettuce by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi is conditioned by the source of phosphorus nutrition.

PubMed

Baslam, Marouane; Pascual, Inmaculada; Sánchez-Díaz, Manuel; Erro, Javier; García-Mina, José María; Goicoechea, Nieves

2011-10-26

The improvement of the nutritional quality of lettuce by its association with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) has been recently reported in a previous study. The aim of this research was to evaluate if the fertilization with three P sources differing in water solubility affects the effectiveness of AMF for improving lettuce growth and nutritional quality. The application of either water-soluble P sources (Hewitt's solution and single superphosphate) or the water-insoluble (WI) fraction of a "rhizosphere-controlled fertilizer" did not exert negative effects on the establishment of the mycorrhizal symbiosis. AMF improved lettuce growth and nutritional quality. Nevertheless, the effect was dependent on the source of P and cultivar. Batavia Rubia Munguía (green cultivar) benefited more than Maravilla de Verano (red cultivar) in terms of mineral nutrients, total soluble sugars, and ascorbate contents. The association of lettuce with AMF resulted in greater quantities of anthocyanins in plants fertilized with WI, carotenoids when plants received either Hewitt's solution or WI, and phenolics regardless of the P fertilizer applied.

Analysis of Management Practices in Lagos State Tertiary Institutions through Total Quality Management Structural Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

AbdulAzeez, Abbas Tunde

2016-01-01

This research investigated total quality management practices and quality teacher education in public tertiary institutions in Lagos State. The study was therefore designed to analyse management practices in Lagos state tertiary institutions through total quality management structural framework. The selected public tertiary institutions in Lagos…

Total Quality Leadership

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

More than 750 NASA, government, contractor, and academic representatives attended the Seventh Annual NASA/Contractors Conference on Quality and Productivity. The panel presentations and Keynote speeches revolving around the theme of total quality leadership provided a solid base of understanding of the importance, benefits, and principles of total quality management (TQM). The presentations from the conference are summarized.

Total Quality Training: The Quality Culture and Quality Trainer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Brian

This book examines the application of total quality management (TQM) principles to training and development. It contains 10 chapters on the following topics: the quality revolution (the nature of and rationale for quality); major barriers to achieving quality (supplier-led approaches, problems with customers, throughput orientation, variable…

Achieving total quality through intelligence.

PubMed

Fuld, L M

1992-02-01

American firms want 'total quality'. The time and money spent by U.S. companies attempting to qualify for the coveted Baldrige Award exemplifies corporate America's desire to achieve new quality standards. Corporate intelligence and 'total quality' are inextricably linked. In this article, the authors demonstrate how shared and properly-used information can be a powerful tool for elevating quality standards, and how corporate intelligence programmes can provide the information links vital for success in attaining the highest standards of quality.

The Impact of Applying Quality Management Practices on Patient Centeredness in Jordanian Public Hospitals: Results of Predictive Modeling

PubMed Central

Hijazi, Heba H.; Harvey, Heather L.; Alyahya, Mohammad S.; Alshraideh, Hussam A.; Al abdi, Rabah M.; Parahoo, Sanjai K.

2018-01-01

Targeting the patient’s needs and preferences has become an important contributor for improving care delivery, enhancing patient satisfaction, and achieving better clinical outcomes. This study aimed to examine the impact of applying quality management practices on patient centeredness within the context of health care accreditation and to explore the differences in the views of various health care workers regarding the attributes affecting patient-centered care. Our study followed a cross-sectional survey design wherein 4 Jordanian public hospitals were investigated several months after accreditation was obtained. Total 829 clinical/nonclinical hospital staff members consented for study participation. This sample was divided into 3 main occupational categories to represent the administrators, nurses, as well as doctors and other health professionals. Using a structural equation modeling, our results indicated that the predictors of patient-centered care for both administrators and those providing clinical care were participation in the accreditation process, leadership commitment to quality improvement, and measurement of quality improvement outcomes. In particular, perceiving the importance of the hospital’s engagement in the accreditation process was shown to be relevant to the administrators (gamma = 0.96), nurses (gamma = 0.80), as well as to doctors and other health professionals (gamma = 0.71). However, the administrator staff (gamma = 0.31) was less likely to perceive the influence of measuring the quality improvement outcomes on the delivery of patient-centered care than nurses (gamma = 0.59) as well as doctors and other health care providers (gamma = 0.55). From the nurses’ perspectives only, patient centeredness was found to be driven by building an institutional framework that supports quality assurance in hospital settings (gamma = 0.36). In conclusion, accreditation is a leading factor for delivering patient-centered care and should be on a hospital’s agenda as a strategy for continuous quality improvement. PMID:29482410

The Impact of Applying Quality Management Practices on Patient Centeredness in Jordanian Public Hospitals: Results of Predictive Modeling.

PubMed

Hijazi, Heba H; Harvey, Heather L; Alyahya, Mohammad S; Alshraideh, Hussam A; Al Abdi, Rabah M; Parahoo, Sanjai K

2018-01-01

Targeting the patient's needs and preferences has become an important contributor for improving care delivery, enhancing patient satisfaction, and achieving better clinical outcomes. This study aimed to examine the impact of applying quality management practices on patient centeredness within the context of health care accreditation and to explore the differences in the views of various health care workers regarding the attributes affecting patient-centered care. Our study followed a cross-sectional survey design wherein 4 Jordanian public hospitals were investigated several months after accreditation was obtained. Total 829 clinical/nonclinical hospital staff members consented for study participation. This sample was divided into 3 main occupational categories to represent the administrators, nurses, as well as doctors and other health professionals. Using a structural equation modeling, our results indicated that the predictors of patient-centered care for both administrators and those providing clinical care were participation in the accreditation process, leadership commitment to quality improvement, and measurement of quality improvement outcomes. In particular, perceiving the importance of the hospital's engagement in the accreditation process was shown to be relevant to the administrators (gamma = 0.96), nurses (gamma = 0.80), as well as to doctors and other health professionals (gamma = 0.71). However, the administrator staff (gamma = 0.31) was less likely to perceive the influence of measuring the quality improvement outcomes on the delivery of patient-centered care than nurses (gamma = 0.59) as well as doctors and other health care providers (gamma = 0.55). From the nurses' perspectives only, patient centeredness was found to be driven by building an institutional framework that supports quality assurance in hospital settings (gamma = 0.36). In conclusion, accreditation is a leading factor for delivering patient-centered care and should be on a hospital's agenda as a strategy for continuous quality improvement.

Total Quality Management Implementation Plan for Military Personnel Management

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-09-01

2050.. )ATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES CO VERED 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5,rrmir18 . FUNDING NUMBERS Total Quality Management Implementation Plan for...SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Military Personnel Management, Continuous Process Improvement 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY...UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED UL NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Prescribed by ANSI Std Z39-16 296-102 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT I

Quality Management Systems for the National Qualifications Framework. Quality Assurance in Education and Training.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New Zealand Qualifications Authority, Wellington.

This booklet explores the idea of quality and its management as it applies to providers of education in particular, but also as it applies to national standards bodies and workplaces offering on-the-job training. It explores the focus on quality in industry and education and defines quality in terms of the features of quality and their…

Saving Material with Systematic Process Designs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerausch, M.

2011-08-01

Global competition is forcing the stamping industry to further increase quality, to shorten time-to-market and to reduce total cost. Continuous balancing between these classical time-cost-quality targets throughout the product development cycle is required to ensure future economical success. In today's industrial practice, die layout standards are typically assumed to implicitly ensure the balancing of company specific time-cost-quality targets. Although die layout standards are a very successful approach, there are two methodical disadvantages. First, the capabilities for tool design have to be continuously adapted to technological innovations; e.g. to take advantage of the full forming capability of new materials. Secondly, the great variety of die design aspects have to be reduced to a generic rule or guideline; e.g. binder shape, draw-in conditions or the use of drawbeads. Therefore, it is important to not overlook cost or quality opportunities when applying die design standards. This paper describes a systematic workflow with focus on minimizing material consumption. The starting point of the investigation is a full process plan for a typical structural part. All requirements are definedaccording to a predefined set of die design standards with industrial relevance are fulfilled. In a first step binder and addendum geometry is systematically checked for material saving potentials. In a second step, blank shape and draw-in are adjusted to meet thinning, wrinkling and springback targets for a minimum blank solution. Finally the identified die layout is validated with respect to production robustness versus splits, wrinkles and springback. For all three steps the applied methodology is based on finite element simulation combined with a stochastical variation of input variables. With the proposed workflow a well-balanced (time-cost-quality) production process assuring minimal material consumption can be achieved.

High Speed Video Applications In The Pharmaceutical Industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stapley, David

1985-02-01

The pursuit of quality is essential in the development and production of drugs. The pursuit of excellence is relentless, a never ending search. In the pharmaceutical industry, we all know and apply wide-ranging techniques to assure quality production. We all know that in reality none of these techniques are perfect for all situations. We have all experienced, the damaged foil, blister or tube, the missing leaflet, the 'hard to read' batch code. We are all aware of the need to supplement the traditional techniques of fault finding. This paper shows how high speed video systems can be applied to fully automated filling and packaging operations as a tool to aid the company's drive for high quality and productivity. The range of products involved totals some 350 in approximately 3,000 pack variants, encompassing creams, ointments, lotions, capsules, tablets, parenteral and sterile antibiotics. Pharmaceutical production demands diligence at all stages, with optimum use of the techniques offered by the latest technology. Figure 1 shows typical stages of pharmaceutical production in which quality must be assured, and highlights those stages where the use of high speed video systems have proved of value to date. The use of high speed video systems begins with the very first use of machine and materials: commissioning and validation, (the term used for determining that a process is capable of consistently producing the requisite quality) and continues to support inprocess monitoring, throughout the life of the plant. The activity of validation in the packaging environment is particularly in need of a tool to see the nature of high speed faults, no matter how infrequently they occur, so that informed changes can be made precisely and rapidly. The prime use of this tool is to ensure that machines are less sensitive to minor variations in component characteristics.

The impact of cooking methods on the nutritional quality and safety of chicken breaded nuggets.

PubMed

Gonçalves Albuquerque, Tânia; Oliveira, M Beatriz P P; Sanches-Silva, Ana; Cristina Bento, Ana; Costa, Helena S

2016-06-15

The impact of cooking methods (industrial pre-frying, deep-fat frying and baking) on the nutritional quality and safety of chicken breaded nugget samples from supermarket and commercial brands was evaluated. The changes in the quality characteristics (nutritional composition, fatty acids profile, cholesterol and salt) of the fried food and frying oil, after ten consecutive frying operations, were evaluated. The total fat content of nuggets varied between 10.9 and 22.7 g per 100 g of edible portion and the salt content ranged from 0.873 to 1.63 g per 100 g. Taking into account one portion of nuggets, the daily intake of salt can reach 49%, which can have a significant impact on the health of those who regularly consume this type of food, especially considering the prevalence of hypertension around the world. The analysed chicken breaded nuggets are rich in unsaturated fatty acids, which have been related with potential health benefits, namely regarding cardiovascular diseases. The cholesterol content of baked samples was two times higher when compared with the fried ones. The trans fatty acids and polar compounds contents of the frying oil used for frying significantly increased, but the values were still away from the maximum recommended by legal entities for its rejection. From a nutritional point of view, it is possible to conclude that the applied cooking methods can significantly influence the nutritional quality and safety of the analysed chicken breaded nuggets. This study will contribute to important knowledge on how the applied cooking methods can change the nutritional quality and safety of foods, namely of chicken nuggets, and can be very useful for dietary recommendations and nutritional assessment.

Head CT: Image quality improvement with ASIR-V using a reduced radiation dose protocol for children.

PubMed

Kim, Hyun Gi; Lee, Ho-Joon; Lee, Seung-Koo; Kim, Hyun Ji; Kim, Myung-Joon

2017-09-01

To investigate the quality of images reconstructed with adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction V (ASIR-V), using pediatric head CT protocols. A phantom was scanned at decreasing 20% mA intervals using our standard pediatric head CT protocols. Each study was then reconstructed at 10% ASIR-V intervals. After the phantom study, we reduced mA by 10% in the protocol for <3-year-old patients and applied 30% ASIR-V and by 30% in the protocol for 3- to 15-year-old patients and applied 40% ASIR-V. Increasing the percentage of ASIR-V resulted in lower noise and higher contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and preserved spatial resolution in the phantom study. Compared to a conventional-protocol, reduced-dose protocol with ASIR-V achieved 12.8% to 34.0% of dose reduction and showed images of lower noise (9.22 vs. 10.73, P = 0.043) and higher CNR in different levels (centrum semiovale, 2.14 vs. 1.52, P = 0.003; basal ganglia, 1.46 vs. 1.07, P = 0.001; and cerebellum, 2.18 vs. 1.33, P < 0.001). Qualitative analysis showed higher gray-white matter differentiation and sharpness and preserved overall diagnostic quality in the images with ASIR-V. Use of ASIR-V allowed a 12.8% to 34.0% dose reduction in each age group with potential to improve image quality. • It is possible to reduce radiation dose and improve image quality with ASIR-V. • We improved noise and CNR and decreased radiation dose. • Sharpness improved with ASIR-V. • Total radiation dose was decreased by 12.8% to 34.0%.

Application of the SPARROW model to assess surface-water nutrient conditions and sources in the United States Pacific Northwest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wise, Daniel R.; Johnson, Henry M.

2013-01-01

The watershed model SPARROW (Spatially Referenced Regressions on Watershed attributes) was used to estimate mean annual surface-water nutrient conditions (total nitrogen and total phosphorus) and to identify important nutrient sources in catchments of the Pacific Northwest region of the United States for 2002. Model-estimated nutrient yields were generally higher in catchments on the wetter, western side of the Cascade Range than in catchments on the drier, eastern side. The largest source of locally generated total nitrogen stream load in most catchments was runoff from forestland, whereas the largest source of locally generated total phosphorus stream load in most catchments was either geologic material or livestock manure (primarily from grazing livestock). However, the highest total nitrogen and total phosphorus yields were predicted in the relatively small number of catchments where urban sources were the largest contributor to local stream load. Two examples are presented that show how SPARROW results can be applied to large rivers—the relative contribution of different nutrient sources to the total nitrogen load in the Willamette River and the total phosphorus load in the Snake River. The results from this study provided an understanding of the regional patterns in surface-water nutrient conditions and should be useful to researchers and water-quality managers performing local nutrient assessments.

The effects of Nintendo Wii(TM)-based balance and upper extremity training on activities of daily living and quality of life in patients with sub-acute stroke: a randomized controlled study.

PubMed

Şimşek, Tülay Tarsuslu; Çekok, Kübra

2016-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Nintendo Wii(TM)-based balance and upper extremity training on activities of daily living and quality of life in patients with subacute stroke. 42 adults with stroke (mean age (SD) = 58.04 (16.56) years and mean time since stroke (SD) = (55.2 ± 22.02 days (∼8 weeks)) were included in the study. Participants were enrolled from the rehabilitation department of a medical center (a single inpatient rehabilitation facility). Participants were randomly assigned to Nintendo Wii group (n = 20) or Bobath neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT) (n = 22). The treatments were applied for 10 weeks (45-60 minutes/day, 3 days/week) for both of two groups. Nintendo Wii group used five games selected from the Wii sports and Wii Fit packages for upper limb and balance training, respectively. The patients in Bobath NDT group were applied a therapy program included upper extremity activites, strength, balance gait and functional training. The functional independence in daily life activities and health-related quality of life was assessed with Functional Independence Measure (FIM) and Nottingham Health Profile (NHP), respectively. Participant's treatment satisfaction was recorded by using Visual Analogue Scale. A second evaluation (FIM and NHP) occurred after 10 weeks at the end of rehabilitative treatment (post-training). Treatment satisfaction was measured after 10 sessions. There were significant difference between FIM and NHP values in NDT and Nintendo Wii group (p < 0.05). However, a significant difference was not found between the groups with regard to FIM and NHP (p > 0.05). The patients in Nintendo Wii group were detected to be better satisfied from the therapy (p < 0.05). A significant difference was found between subparameters and total FIM score, all subparameters and total NHP score in both groups (p < 0.05). These findings suggested that the Nintendo Wii training was as effective as Bobath NDT on daily living functions and quality of life in subacute stroke patients.

Synthesis of the unmanned aerial vehicle remote control augmentation system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tomczyk, Andrzej, E-mail: A.Tomczyk@prz.edu.pl

Medium size Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) usually flies as an autonomous aircraft including automatic take-off and landing phases. However in the case of the on-board control system failure, the remote steering is using as an emergency procedure. In this reason, remote manual control of unmanned aerial vehicle is used more often during take-of and landing phases. Depends on UAV take-off mass and speed (total energy) the potential crash can be very danger for airplane and environment. So, handling qualities of UAV is important from pilot-operator point of view. In many cases the dynamic properties of remote controlling UAV are notmore » suitable for obtaining the desired properties of the handling qualities. In this case the control augmentation system (CAS) should be applied. Because the potential failure of the on-board control system, the better solution is that the CAS algorithms are placed on the ground station computers. The method of UAV handling qualities shaping in the case of basic control system failure is presented in this paper. The main idea of this method is that UAV reaction on the operator steering signals should be similar - almost the same - as reaction of the 'ideal' remote control aircraft. The model following method was used for controller parameters calculations. The numerical example concerns the medium size MP-02A UAV applied as an aerial observer system.« less

Impacts of delayed addition of N-rich and acidic substrates on nitrogen loss and compost quality during pig manure composting.

PubMed

Jiang, Jishao; Kang, Kang; Chen, Dan; Liu, Ningning

2018-02-01

Delayed addition of Nitrogen (N)-rich and acidic substrates was investigated to evaluate its effects on N loss and compost quality during the composting process. Three different delayed adding methods of N-rich (pig manure) and acidic substrates (phosphate fertilizer and rotten apples) were tested during the pig manure and wheat straw is composting. The results showed that delayed addition of pig manure and acidic materials led two temperature peaks, and the durations of two separate thermophilic phase were closely related to the amount of pig manure. Delayed addition reduced total N loss by up to 14% when using superphosphate as acidic substrates, and by up to 12% when using rotten apples as acidic substrates, which is mainly due to the decreased NH 3 emissions. At the end of composting, delayed the addition of pig manure caused a significant increase in the HS (humus substance) content, and the highest HS content was observed when 70% of the pig manure was applied at day 0 and the remaining 30% was applied on day 27. In the final compost, the GI in all treatments almost reached the maturity requirement by exceeding 80%. The results suggest that delayed addition of animal manure and acidic substrates could prevent the N loss during composting and improve the compost quality. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Recommendations on the most suitable quality-of-life measurement instruments for bariatric and body contouring surgery: a systematic review.

PubMed

de Vries, C E E; Kalff, M C; Prinsen, C A C; Coulman, K D; den Haan, C; Welbourn, R; Blazeby, J M; Morton, J M; van Wagensveld, B A

2018-06-08

The objective of this study is to systematically assess the quality of existing patient-reported outcome measures developed and/or validated for Quality of Life measurement in bariatric surgery (BS) and body contouring surgery (BCS). We conducted a systematic literature search in PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane Database Systematic Reviews and CENTRAL identifying studies on measurement properties of BS and BCS Quality of Life instruments. For all eligible studies, we evaluated the methodological quality of the studies by using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments checklist and the quality of the measurement instruments by applying quality criteria. Four degrees of recommendation were assigned to validated instruments (A-D). Out of 4,354 articles, a total of 26 articles describing 24 instruments were included. No instrument met all requirements (category A). Seven instruments have the potential to be recommended depending on further validation studies (category B). Of these seven, the BODY-Q has the strongest evidence for content validity in BS and BCS. Two instruments had poor quality in at least one required quality criterion (category C). Fifteen instruments were minimally validated (category D). The BODY-Q, developed for BS and BCS, possessed the strongest evidence for quality of measurement properties and has the potential to be recommended in future clinical trials. © 2018 The Authors. Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of World Obesity Federation.

Total Quality Management Office for Contracting Integrity Implementation Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

REPORT______ANDDATESCOVERED 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE S. FUNDING NUMBERS Total Quality Management Office for Contracting Integrity Implementatiun Plan 6. AUTHOR(S) 7...01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) P’,croed 1:, ANSI Std 3J9-16 29d. 102 4 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT OFFICE FOR CONTRACTING INTEGRITY...IMPLEMENTATION PLAN According to the Total Quality Management (TQM) Master Plan, each PSE head, supported by Working Groups, will implement the HQ DLA Master

Defense Depot Mechanicsburg Total Quality Management Implementation Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-06-01

B T I TLEE 5 . FUNDING NUMBERS Defense Depot Mechanicsburg Total Quality Management Implementation Plan 6. AUTHOR(S) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME...Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) L296- 102 Acces.ion For NYI J ... I:: ted DEFENSE DEPOT MECHANICSBURG PENNSYLVANIAL--I By_ TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT K_~ t buty-n...IMPLEMENTATION PLAN Avmail-t!Ilty Codes IvLl c 2Dd/or JUN 3 0 1989 iDizt Special PURPOSE The purpose of this Total Quality Management Implementation

Total Quality Management Implementation Plan Defense Depot Memphis

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

W.ungilon. 0 t :0.O. )RT DATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED I July 1989 _ 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS Total Quality Management Implementation...improvement goals, implementation strategy and milestones. 6’ SEP 291989 /; ELECTE i= E 14. SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Depot...changing work environment where change is the norm. We are talking about changes in attitudes and habits. Total Quality Management is not a panacea

Total Quality Management, DLA Finance Center

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

ton. DC 20503. DATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED SJuly 1989 4. TITLE AND SUBTIT’LE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS Total Quality Management , DLA Finance Center 6...1989 ~ D 14. SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement. ., I Management 16. PRICE CODE 17...CONCEPTS TQM BASICS Total Quality Management (TQM) is a concept which is based on the work of a variety of people in a variety of fields. It includes

Total Quality Management Implementation Plan: DLA-N

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

e Wastimto , n. Othe 20 Seato3 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE S. FUNDING NUMBERS DLA-N Total Quality Management 6. AUTHOR(S) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S...PAGES TQM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement.(; , Defense National Stockpile 16. PRICE CODEI17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18...IUNCLASSIFIED UL NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) pr"!Cbed ty ANSI Std Z39’B6 296-102 DLA - N TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION PLAN I

DRMS (Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service) Total Quality Management (TQM) Implementation Plan

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

FUNDING NUMBERS DRMS Total Quality Management (TQM) Implementation Plan 6. AUTHOR(S) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING...OF PAGES TOM (Total Quality Management ), Continuous Process Improvement. ’f’ - Management 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION 18. SECURITY...7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Pr"cried by ANi SWt 139-i 296-101 DRMS TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN PURPOSE The

Analyzing the Relative Linkages of Land Use and Hydrologic Variables with Urban Surface Water Quality using Multivariate Techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmed, S.; Abdul-Aziz, O. I.

2015-12-01

We used a systematic data-analytics approach to analyze and quantify relative linkages of four stream water quality indicators (total nitrogen, TN; total phosphorus, TP; chlorophyll-a, Chla; and dissolved oxygen, DO) with six land use and four hydrologic variables, along with the potential external (upstream in-land and downstream coastal) controls in highly complex coastal urban watersheds of southeast Florida, U.S.A. Multivariate pattern recognition techniques of principle component and factor analyses, in concert with Pearson correlation analysis, were applied to map interrelations and identify latent patterns of the participatory variables. Relative linkages of the in-stream water quality variables with their associated drivers were then quantified by developing dimensionless partial least squares (PLS) regression model based on standardized data. Model fitting efficiency (R2=0.71-0.87) and accuracy (ratio of root-mean-square error to the standard deviation of the observations, RSR=0.35-0.53) suggested good predictions of the water quality variables in both wet and dry seasons. Agricultural land and groundwater exhibited substantial controls on surface water quality. In-stream TN concentration appeared to be mostly contributed by the upstream water entering from Everglades in both wet and dry seasons. In contrast, watershed land uses had stronger linkages with TP and Chla than that of the watershed hydrologic and upstream (Everglades) components for both seasons. Both land use and hydrologic components showed strong linkages with DO in wet season; however, the land use linkage appeared to be less in dry season. The data-analytics method provided a comprehensive empirical framework to achieve crucial mechanistic insights into the urban stream water quality processes. Our study quantitatively identified dominant drivers of water quality, indicating key management targets to maintain healthy stream ecosystems in complex urban-natural environments near the coast.

Effect of different cooking methods on minerals, vitamins and nutritional quality indices of kutum roach (Rutilus frisii kutum).

PubMed

Hosseini, Hedayat; Mahmoudzadeh, Maryam; Rezaei, Masoud; Mahmoudzadeh, Leila; Khaksar, Ramin; Khosroshahi, Nader Karimian; Babakhani, Aria

2014-04-01

In this study, the influence of four cooking methods (baking, boiling, microwaving and frying) was evaluated on the nutritional value of kutum roach. Proximate, fatty acid composition, vitamin and mineral contents and also nutritional quality indices (NQI) of kutum roach were investigated before and after cooking treatment. All treated samples showed increase in protein, ash and lipid contents and decrease in the content of total omega-3 fatty acids (n-3) in comparison to raw fish fillets (control group). Cooking methods had no significant effect on omega-6 fatty acids (n-6) except for frying that increased it. Nonetheless, all of the cooking methods reduced vitamin B1, A and D contents. Boiling significantly decreased mineral contents including Na, K, P and Zn. Considering the overall nutritional quality indices, vitamin and mineral contents, baking is the best cooking method among other applied methods. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Computational approaches for the classification of seed storage proteins.

PubMed

Radhika, V; Rao, V Sree Hari

2015-07-01

Seed storage proteins comprise a major part of the protein content of the seed and have an important role on the quality of the seed. These storage proteins are important because they determine the total protein content and have an effect on the nutritional quality and functional properties for food processing. Transgenic plants are being used to develop improved lines for incorporation into plant breeding programs and the nutrient composition of seeds is a major target of molecular breeding programs. Hence, classification of these proteins is crucial for the development of superior varieties with improved nutritional quality. In this study we have applied machine learning algorithms for classification of seed storage proteins. We have presented an algorithm based on nearest neighbor approach for classification of seed storage proteins and compared its performance with decision tree J48, multilayer perceptron neural (MLP) network and support vector machine (SVM) libSVM. The model based on our algorithm has been able to give higher classification accuracy in comparison to the other methods.

Health-related quality of life and classroom participation of deaf and hard-of-hearing students in general schools.

PubMed

Hintermair, Manfred

2011-01-01

A group of deaf and hard-of-hearing (D/HH) students at mainstream schools (N = 212) was investigated in a questionnaire-based survey using the Inventory of Life Quality of Children and Youth (ILC) and the Classroom Participation Questionnaire. The ILC data for the D/HH sample are for the most part comparable with the data from a normative hearing sample. Item-total correlations showed that the domains of school and social activities with peers were more important for the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) of the D/HH students than for that of the hearing students. The results also reveal differences in the HRQoL levels of the two samples, with the D/HH sample having higher scores for school experiences, physical and mental health, and overall HRQoL, though the effect sizes for the differences are small to moderate. Specific characteristics of the D/HH sample may be responsible for this result. There are also relationships between quality of life and perceived classroom participation in certain domains: Students who perceive classroom participation as satisfying have higher scores for quality of life in school, social contact with peers, and mental health. This also applied to the scores for global assessment and a summarized quality of life indicator.

A diagnosis of the microbiological quality of dehydrated bee-pollen produced in Brazil.

PubMed

De-Melo, A A M; Estevinho, M L M F; Almeida-Muradian, L B

2015-11-01

Bee-pollen is an apicultural product with potential for medical and nutritional applications; therefore, its microbiology quality should be monitored. In this context, the objective of this study was to diagnose the microbiological quality of 45 dehydrated bee-pollen samples collected from November 2011 to December 2013 in nine Brazilian States. All the samples were negative for sulphite-reducing Clostridium spores, Salmonella, coagulase-positive Staphylococcus and Escherichia coli, which are micro-organisms of public health concern. Total aerobic mesophilic micro-organism counts ranged from <10 to 1·10 × 10(4) CFU g(-1) , with psychrotroph counts ranging from <10 to 1·12 × 10(3) CFU g(-1) and total coliforms from <10 to 2·80 × 10(3) CFU g(-1) , while the values for yeasts and moulds were between <10 to 7·67 × 10(3) CFU g(-1) . According to the literature, the microbiota observed in this study were typical; however, it is important to consider that these micro-organisms may cause spoilage and diminish shelf life, reason by which quality control programs should be implemented. Contamination of bee-pollen can occur during production, collection and processing, but there are few studies of the microbiological quality of this product. Brazil is an important producer of dehydrated bee-pollen, therefore, a diagnosis of the microbiological status is important to ensure the safety of many consumers. Salmonella sp., genus Clostridium, coagulase-positive Staphylococcus, Escherichia coli and even some yeast species are micro-organisms of public health concern and their presence must be monitored. Furthermore, the determination of spoilage micro-organisms indicates whether the production and the processing practices carried out by beekeepers and warehouses were adequate. © 2015 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Support vector machine-an alternative to artificial neuron network for water quality forecasting in an agricultural nonpoint source polluted river?

PubMed

Liu, Mei; Lu, Jun

2014-09-01

Water quality forecasting in agricultural drainage river basins is difficult because of the complicated nonpoint source (NPS) pollution transport processes and river self-purification processes involved in highly nonlinear problems. Artificial neural network (ANN) and support vector model (SVM) were developed to predict total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations for any location of the river polluted by agricultural NPS pollution in eastern China. River flow, water temperature, flow travel time, rainfall, dissolved oxygen, and upstream TN or TP concentrations were selected as initial inputs of the two models. Monthly, bimonthly, and trimonthly datasets were selected to train the two models, respectively, and the same monthly dataset which had not been used for training was chosen to test the models in order to compare their generalization performance. Trial and error analysis and genetic algorisms (GA) were employed to optimize the parameters of ANN and SVM models, respectively. The results indicated that the proposed SVM models performed better generalization ability due to avoiding the occurrence of overtraining and optimizing fewer parameters based on structural risk minimization (SRM) principle. Furthermore, both TN and TP SVM models trained by trimonthly datasets achieved greater forecasting accuracy than corresponding ANN models. Thus, SVM models will be a powerful alternative method because it is an efficient and economic tool to accurately predict water quality with low risk. The sensitivity analyses of two models indicated that decreasing upstream input concentrations during the dry season and NPS emission along the reach during average or flood season should be an effective way to improve Changle River water quality. If the necessary water quality and hydrology data and even trimonthly data are available, the SVM methodology developed here can easily be applied to other NPS-polluted rivers.

The effect of a novel photodynamic activation method mediated by curcumin on oyster shelf life and quality.

PubMed

Liu, Fang; Li, Zhaojie; Cao, Binbin; Wu, Juan; Wang, Yuming; Xue, Yong; Xu, Jie; Xue, Changhu; Tang, Qing Juan

2016-09-01

In this paper, the effect of photodynamic method mediated by curcumin (PDT) on the shelf life and quality of pacific oysters during storage at 5±1°C were analyzed. In our previous study we investigated the optimal treatment conditions of photodynamic method mediated by curcumin to sterilization were 10uM photosensitizer concentration and 5.4J/cm 2 light energy density. Under these conditions, the effect of a novel photodynamic activation method mediated by curcumin on oyster shelf life and quality was researched. The total bacterial counts, TVB-N content and sensory analysis were used to evaluate the effects on oyster shelf life. The oyster shelf life was prolonged from 8days to 12days after photodynamic treatment and the oysters in the treatment group displayed notable odor retention, produced fewer odor corrupting substances when the control group oysters reached the end of their shelf life (day 8). Texture, free amino acid contents and fatty acid levels were applied to estimate the quality of the treated oysters. The texture had no significant change after treated with PDT. At the end of oyster shelf life, compared PDT group (PDT) with control group (control), total free amino acid contents (control: 234.30mg/100g, PDT: 813.02mg/100g) was higher and free fatty acid levels (control: 0.071mEq/L, PDT: 0.0455mEq/L) displayed lower in PDT group. This indicated that the treated oysters oxidized minimally, decayed slowly, decomposed fewer nutrients and had lower metabolic levels of spoilage microorganisms. PDT has a positive effect on prolonging oyster shelf life and its quality. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Exploration of rapidly determining quality of traditional Chinese medicines by (NIR) spectroscopy based on internet sharing mode].

PubMed

Ni, Li-Jun; Luan, Shao-Rong; Zhang, Li-Guo

2016-10-01

Because of the numerous varieties of herbal species and active ingredients in the traditional Chinese medicine(TCM),the traditional methods employed could hardly satisfy the current determination requirements of TCM.The present work proposed an idea to realize rapid determination of the quality of TCM based on near infrared(NIR)spectroscopy and internet sharing mode. Low cost and portable multi-source composite spectrometer was invented by our group for in-site fast measurement of spectra of TCM samples. The database could be set up by sharing spectra and quality detection data of TCM samples among TCM enterprises based on the internet platform.A novel method called as keeping same relationship between X and Y space based on K nearest neighbors(KNN-KSR for short)was applied to predict the contents of effective compounds of the samples. In addition,a comparative study between KNN-KSR and partial least squares(PLS)was conducted. Two datasets were applied to validate above idea:one was about 58 Ginkgo Folium samples samples measured with four near-infrared spectroscopy instruments and two multi-source composite spectrometers,another one was about 80 corn samples available online measured with three NIR instruments. The results show that the KNN-KSR method could obtain more reliable outcomes without correcting spectrum.However transforming the PLS models to other instruments could hardly acquire better predictive results until spectral calibration is performed. Meanwhile,the similar analysis results of total flavonoids and total lactones of Ginkgo Folium samples are achieved on the multi-source composite spectrometers and near-infrared spectroscopy instruments,and the prediction results of KNN-KSR are better than PLS. The idea proposed in present study is in urgent need of more samples spectra, and then to be verified by more case studies. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

[Design and validation of a satisfaction and quality of life scale for users of residential and social care centres].

PubMed

Literas, Luciano; Navarro, Albert; Fontanals, María Dulce

2010-01-01

In a comprehensive approach to ageing care, the promotion of personal and emotional well-being is fundamental, as well as the development of tools to evaluate outcomes. This approach needs to take into account the subjective perception of the elderly by gathering evidence using indicators that express impacts and satisfaction. Thus, the SAR Foundation's Satisfaction and Quality of Life Scale (SyCV-FSAR) has been developed and validated to assess well-being in residential care settings. Bibliographical reviews, interviews and focal groups with professionals (doctors, nurses, social workers, quality managers, etc.) were conducted to define the questionnaire that was first piloted and then applied in a final survey. Test of validity was carried out by factorial analysis (FA), principal axis factoring and Oblimin rotation. The sampling adequacy was measured by Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test and Bartlett's sphericity. Test of reliability was carried out by internal consistency analysis (Cronbach's alpha). A total of 475 users took part in the survey, 69.1% of those who fulfilled the criteria. Of these 60.0% were women, an average age 82.1, 47.2% of them between 75 and 84 years old, with a MMSE of 27. The FA identified three factors ("Residential service and geriatric care", "Personal framework" and "Social relationships") that explained 27.5% of the total variability. The measure of sampling adequacy by Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test was 0.80, and the Bartlett's sphericity test was significant (P<0.001). The global α Cronbach was 0.82. According to the results obtained in the study we can conclude that the SyCV-FSAR Scale is a reliable, simple and easy-to-apply tool, which gathers the users' perception on key aspects of daily life in residential and social care centres. Copyright © 2009 SEGG. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Utility of Modified Ultrafast Papanicolaou Stain in Cytological Diagnosis

PubMed Central

Arakeri, Surekha Ulhas

2017-01-01

Introduction Need for minimal turnaround time for assessing Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) has encouraged innovations in staining techniques that require lesser staining time with unequivocal cell morphology. The standard protocol for conventional Papanicolaou (PAP) stain requires about 40 minutes. To overcome this, Ultrafast Papanicolaou (UFP) stain was introduced which reduces staining time to 90 seconds and also enhances the quality. However, reagents required for this were not easily available hence, Modified Ultrafast Papanicolaou (MUFP) stain was introduced subsequently. Aim To assess the efficacy of MUFP staining by comparing the quality of MUFP stain with conventional PAP stain. Materials and Methods FNAC procedure was performed by using 10 ml disposable syringe and 22-23 G needle. Total 131 FNAC cases were studied which were lymph node (30), thyroid (38), breast (22), skin and soft tissue (24), salivary gland (11) and visceral organs (6). Two smears were prepared and stained by MUFP and conventional PAP stain. Scores were given on four parameters: background of smears, overall staining pattern, cell morphology and nuclear staining. Quality Index (QI) was calculated from ratio of total score achieved to maximum score possible. Statistical analysis using chi square test was applied to each of the four parameters before obtaining the QI in both stains. Students t-test was applied to evaluate the efficacy of MUFP in comparison with conventional PAP stain. Results The QI of MUFP for thyroid, breast, lymph node, skin and soft tissue, salivary gland and visceral organs was 0.89, 0.85, 0.89, 0.83, 0.92, and 0.78 respectively. Compared to conventional PAP stain QI of MUFP smears was better in all except visceral organ cases and was statistically significant. MUFP showed clear red blood cell background, transparent cytoplasm and crisp nuclear features. Conclusion MUFP is fast, reliable and can be done with locally available reagents with unequivocal morphology which is the need of the hour for a cytopathology set-up. PMID:28511391

Utility of Modified Ultrafast Papanicolaou Stain in Cytological Diagnosis.

PubMed

Sinkar, Prachi; Arakeri, Surekha Ulhas

2017-03-01

Need for minimal turnaround time for assessing Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) has encouraged innovations in staining techniques that require lesser staining time with unequivocal cell morphology. The standard protocol for conventional Papanicolaou (PAP) stain requires about 40 minutes. To overcome this, Ultrafast Papanicolaou (UFP) stain was introduced which reduces staining time to 90 seconds and also enhances the quality. However, reagents required for this were not easily available hence, Modified Ultrafast Papanicolaou (MUFP) stain was introduced subsequently. To assess the efficacy of MUFP staining by comparing the quality of MUFP stain with conventional PAP stain. FNAC procedure was performed by using 10 ml disposable syringe and 22-23 G needle. Total 131 FNAC cases were studied which were lymph node (30), thyroid (38), breast (22), skin and soft tissue (24), salivary gland (11) and visceral organs (6). Two smears were prepared and stained by MUFP and conventional PAP stain. Scores were given on four parameters: background of smears, overall staining pattern, cell morphology and nuclear staining. Quality Index (QI) was calculated from ratio of total score achieved to maximum score possible. Statistical analysis using chi square test was applied to each of the four parameters before obtaining the QI in both stains. Students t-test was applied to evaluate the efficacy of MUFP in comparison with conventional PAP stain. The QI of MUFP for thyroid, breast, lymph node, skin and soft tissue, salivary gland and visceral organs was 0.89, 0.85, 0.89, 0.83, 0.92, and 0.78 respectively. Compared to conventional PAP stain QI of MUFP smears was better in all except visceral organ cases and was statistically significant. MUFP showed clear red blood cell background, transparent cytoplasm and crisp nuclear features. MUFP is fast, reliable and can be done with locally available reagents with unequivocal morphology which is the need of the hour for a cytopathology set-up.

Effects on run-off water quantity and quality of urban organic wastes applied in a degraded semi-arid ecosystem.

PubMed

Martínez, F; Casermeiro, M A; Morales, D; Cuevas, G; Walter, Ingrid

2003-04-15

Biosolids and composted municipal solid wastes were surface-applied (0 and 80 Mg ha(-1)) to a degraded soil in a semi-arid environment to determine their effects on the quantity and quality of run-off water. Three and 4 years after application, a simulated rainfall was performed (intensity=942.5 ml min(-1) and kinetic energy=3.92 J m(-2)) on 0.078 m(2) plots using a portable rainfall simulator. The run-off from the different treatment plots was collected and analysed. The type of treatment was highly related to infiltration, run-off and sediment production. The biosolid-treated plots showed the minimum value of total run-off, maximum time to the beginning of run-off and maximum run-off ratio (the relationship between total rainfall and run-off). The MSW-treated plots showed values intermediate between biosolid-treated plots and control plots. Soil losses were also closely related to treatment type. Control plots showed the maximum sediment yield, MSW-treated plots showed intermediate values, and biosolid plots the minimum values for washout. The concentrations of NH(4)-N and PO(4)-P in the run-off water were significantly higher in the treated plots than in control plots. The highest PO(4)-P value, 0.73 mg l(-1), was obtained in the soil treated with biosolids; NO(3)-N concentration also increased significantly with respect to the control and MSW treatments. NH(4)-N concentrations of 15.6 and 15.0 mg l(-1) were recorded in the soils treated with biosolids and MSW, respectively, values approximately five times higher than those obtained in run-off water from untreated soil. However, the concentrations of all these constituents were lower than threshold limits cited in water quality standards for agricultural use. With the exception of Cu, all trace metals analysed in the run-off water were below detection limits.

Total Quality Management in the Department of Defense

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-09-01

DTI ELECT SDu TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE THESIS BRUCE E. SPRINGS, B.S. CAPTAIN, USAF AFIT/GLN/LSR/ 89S -57 I1- DEPARTMENT...13 0 3 AFIT/GLM/LSR/89S-57 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE THESIS BRUCE E. SPRINGS, B.S. CAPTAIN, USAF AFIT/GLH/LSR/89S-57...Defense. # AFIT/GLM/LSR/89S-57 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE THESIS Presented to the Faculty of the School of Systems and Logistics

Effect of physico-chemical treatments on ripening behavior and post-harvest quality of Amrapali mango (Mangifera indica L.) during storage.

PubMed

Singh, Pankaj; Singh, Manoj Kumar; Kumar, Vipin; Kumar, Mukesh; Malik, Sunil

2012-03-01

An experiment was done to assess the effect of various physico-chemical treatments on ripening behavior and post harvest quality of mango cv. Amrapali. The experiment was planned under completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. The treatment units was five fruits per replication. Total 14 treatments were applied. Out of these, ethrel 750 ppm treated fruits showed better results in respect of specific gravity (0.88), moisture loss (8.45%), decay (2.5%), total soluble solids (TSS, 20.7 degrees brix), sugar content (14.39%) and acidity content (0.32) followed by ethrel 500 ppm; specific gravity (0.90), moisture loss (8.82%), decay (3.5%), TSS (20.7 degrees brix), sugar content (13.99%) and acidity content (0.36%). The pedicellate fruits and ethrel+bavistin (750+1000 ppm) were also found to be significantly superior over control in respect of specific gravity (0.88 and 0.86), moisture loss (9.10 and 9.33%), decay (4.0 and 5.33%), TSS (20.1 and 20.4 degrees brix), sugar content (12.70 and 12.80%) and acidity content (0.42 and 0.38%), respectively. Based on results of this study, it can be concluded that ethrel 750 ppm was found to be the most suitable treatment in improving physico-chemical traits i.e. ripening, storage, quality and shelf-life for commercial purpose in mango.

Linking Stream Dissolved Oxygen with the Dynamic Environmental Drivers across the Pacific Coast of U.S.A.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Araya, F. Z.; Abdul-Aziz, O. I.

2017-12-01

This study utilized a systematic data analytics approach to determine the relative linkages of stream dissolved oxygen (DO) with the hydro-climatic and biogeochemical drivers across the U.S. Pacific Coast. Multivariate statistical techniques of Pearson correlation matrix, principal component analysis, and factor analysis were applied to a complex water quality dataset (1998-2015) at 35 water quality monitoring stations of USGS NWIS and EPA STORET. Power-law based partial least squares regression (PLSR) models with a bootstrap Monte Carlo procedure (1000 iterations) were developed to reliably estimate the relative linkages by resolving multicollinearity (Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency, NSE = 0.50-0.94). Based on the dominant drivers, four environmental regimes have been identified and adequately described the system-data variances. In Pacific North West and Southern California, water temperature was the most dominant driver of DO in majority of the streams. However, in Central and Northern California, stream DO was controlled by multiple drivers (i.e., water temperature, pH, stream flow, and total phosphorus), exhibiting a transitional environmental regime. Further, total phosphorus (TP) appeared to be the limiting nutrient for most streams. The estimated linkages and insights would be useful to identify management priorities to achieve healthy coastal stream ecosystems across the Pacific Coast of U.S.A. and similar regions around the world. Keywords: Data analytics, water quality, coastal streams, dissolved oxygen, environmental regimes, Pacific Coast, United States.

Improved quality of a vitamin B12-fortified 'ready to blend' fresh-cut mix salad with chitosan.

PubMed

Artés-Hernández, Francisco; Formica-Oliveira, Anna Carolina; Artés, Francisco; Martínez-Hernández, Ginés Benito

2017-09-01

A vitamin B12-fortified (0.25 mg L -1 ) chitosan (10 g L -1 ) coating was applied to a ready-to-blend fresh-cut salad including melon, pineapple and carrot, which was stored at 5 ℃ up to nine days. Uncoated samples were used as control while the vitamin B12 effect was compared to non-fortified chitosan-coated samples. Beverages were prepared on blending days 0, 4, 7 and 9 with subsequent storage at 5 ℃ for 0, 24 and 48 h. Physicochemical quality of fresh blended beverages was well preserved throughout storage. The chitosan coating highly reduced epiphytic microflora growth and polyphenoloxidase/peroxidase activities. No relevant variations of total phenolic contents were observed between different fresh blended beverages. However, its total antioxidant capacity reported after blending was lower as storage time of ready-to-blend samples increased. Fortified samples showed a vitamin B12 content of 8.6 µg kg -1 on processing day, ensuring 200 mL of such beverage the recommended daily intake of this vitamin. In conclusion, a ready-to-blend fruit/vegetable mix, fortified with vitamin B12, was developed with a shelf life of nine days at 5 ℃ showing the prepared beverages good quality during subsequent storage for 48 h at 5 ℃.

International Regulations of Propolis Quality: Required Assays do not Necessarily Reflect their Polyphenolic-Related In Vitro Activities.

PubMed

Bridi, Raquel; Montenegro, Gloria; Nuñez-Quijada, Gabriel; Giordano, Ady; Fernanda Morán-Romero, Maria; Jara-Pezoa, Isaac; Speisky, Hernán; Atala, Elias; López-Alarcón, Camilo

2015-06-01

Propolis has been proposed as a polyphenolic-rich natural product potentially able to be used for human consumption or even for medicinal proposes. To guarantee a minimum phenolic and flavonoid content and as consequence of their related-biological activities, international requirements of propolis quality are commonly applied. In this work we assessed phenolic and flavonoid contents of propolis; the antioxidant capacity (toward peroxyl radicals and hypochlorous acid); the ability to generate nitric oxide (NO); and, finally the antimicrobial activity of 6 propolis samples from the VI region of Chile. Our results show that the total phenolic and flavonoid content of propolis samples are not always in agreement with their polyphenolic-associated in vitro activities. For example, P03 and P06 samples showed the lowest (25 ± 4 GAE/g propolis) and the highest (105 ± 3 GAE/g propolis) total phenolic content, respectively. This was in agreement with flavonoid content and their Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) activity. However, this dependence was not observed toward HOCl, NO release and antimicrobial activity. Based on our results, we consider that, in order to guarantee the antioxidant or antimicrobial in vitro effects, the international regulations of propolis quality should contemplate the convenience of incorporating other simple analytical test such as ORAC or antimicrobial tests. © 2015 Institute of Food Technologists®

Effects of 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol on growth performance, parameters of tibia and plasma, meat quality, and type IIb sodium phosphate cotransporter gene expression of one- to twenty-one-day-old broilers.

PubMed

Han, J C; Yang, X D; Zhang, T; Li, H; Li, W L; Zhang, Z Y; Yao, J H

2009-02-01

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol (1alpha-OH D3) on the growth performance, tibia and plasma parameters, nutrient utilization, meat quality of the breast and thigh, and type IIb sodium phosphate cotranspoter gene expression of broilers. A total of 96 males of 1-d-old Arbor Acres broilers were randomly assigned to 8 cages of 12 birds each. Two dietary treatments were applied to 4 cages each. Diet 1 was prepared as the basal diet (nonphytate phosphorus, 0.21%), whereas diet 2 was the basal diet supplemented with 5 microg/kg of 1alpha-OH D3. Results showed that supplementation of the basal diet with 1alpha-OH D3 increased growth performance, tibia ash and strength, plasma inorganic phosphate concentration, utilization of total phosphorus and nonphytate phosphorus, lightness and yellowness of the breast and thigh meat, and intestinal type IIb sodium phosphate cotranspoter mRNA expression, whereas it decreased the shear force and water-holding capacity of the thigh meat. These data suggest that the addition of 1alpha-OH D3 might improve growth performance, tibia development, and meat quality in 1- to 21-d-old broilers by increasing the absorption and retention of phosphorus.

Regional effects of agricultural conservation practices on nutrient transport in the Upper Mississippi River Basin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Garcia, Ana Maria.; Alexander, Richard B.; Arnold, Jeffrey G.; Norfleet, Lee; White, Michael J.; Robertson, Dale M.; Schwarz, Gregory E.

2016-01-01

Despite progress in the implementation of conservation practices, related improvements in water quality have been challenging to measure in larger river systems. In this paper we quantify these downstream effects by applying the empirical U.S. Geological Survey water-quality model SPARROW to investigate whether spatial differences in conservation intensity were statistically correlated with variations in nutrient loads. In contrast to other forms of water quality data analysis, the application of SPARROW controls for confounding factors such as hydrologic variability, multiple sources and environmental processes. A measure of conservation intensity was derived from the USDA-CEAP regional assessment of the Upper Mississippi River and used as an explanatory variable in a model of the Upper Midwest. The spatial pattern of conservation intensity was negatively correlated (p = 0.003) with the total nitrogen loads in streams in the basin. Total phosphorus loads were weakly negatively correlated with conservation (p = 0.25). Regional nitrogen reductions were estimated to range from 5 to 34% and phosphorus reductions from 1 to 10% in major river basins of the Upper Mississippi region. The statistical associations between conservation and nutrient loads are consistent with hydrological and biogeochemical processes such as denitrification. The results provide empirical evidence at the regional scale that conservation practices have had a larger statistically detectable effect on nitrogen than on phosphorus loadings in streams and rivers of the Upper Mississippi Basin.

Regional Effects of Agricultural Conservation Practices on Nutrient Transport in the Upper Mississippi River Basin.

PubMed

García, Ana María; Alexander, Richard B; Arnold, Jeffrey G; Norfleet, Lee; White, Michael J; Robertson, Dale M; Schwarz, Gregory

2016-07-05

Despite progress in the implementation of conservation practices, related improvements in water quality have been challenging to measure in larger river systems. In this paper we quantify these downstream effects by applying the empirical U.S. Geological Survey water-quality model SPARROW to investigate whether spatial differences in conservation intensity were statistically correlated with variations in nutrient loads. In contrast to other forms of water quality data analysis, the application of SPARROW controls for confounding factors such as hydrologic variability, multiple sources and environmental processes. A measure of conservation intensity was derived from the USDA-CEAP regional assessment of the Upper Mississippi River and used as an explanatory variable in a model of the Upper Midwest. The spatial pattern of conservation intensity was negatively correlated (p = 0.003) with the total nitrogen loads in streams in the basin. Total phosphorus loads were weakly negatively correlated with conservation (p = 0.25). Regional nitrogen reductions were estimated to range from 5 to 34% and phosphorus reductions from 1 to 10% in major river basins of the Upper Mississippi region. The statistical associations between conservation and nutrient loads are consistent with hydrological and biogeochemical processes such as denitrification. The results provide empirical evidence at the regional scale that conservation practices have had a larger statistically detectable effect on nitrogen than on phosphorus loadings in streams and rivers of the Upper Mississippi Basin.

Evaluation of food and beverage television advertising during children's viewing time in Spain using the UK nutrient profile model.

PubMed

Romero-Fernández, Ma Mar; Royo-Bordonada, Miguel Ángel; Rodríguez-Artalejo, Fernando

2013-07-01

To evaluate the nutritional quality of products advertised on television (TV) during children’s viewing time in Spain, applying the UK nutrient profile model (UKNPM). We recorded 80 h of four general TV station broadcasts during children’s time in May and June 2008, and identified all advertisements for foods and beverages. Nutritional information was obtained from the product labels or websites and from food composition tables. Each product was classified as healthy (e.g. gazpacho, a vegetable juice) or less healthy (e.g. potato crisp snacks) according to the UKNPM criteria. Four free-of-charge TV channels in Spain: two national channels and two regional ones. TV commercials of food and beverages. A total of 486 commercials were broadcast for ninety-six different products, with a mean frequency of 5?1 advertisements per product. Some 61?5% of the ninety-six products were less healthy, and the percentage was higher for foods (74?1 %). All (100 %) of the breakfast cereals and 80% of the non-alcoholic drinks and soft drinks were less healthy. Of the total sample of commercials, 59?7% were for less healthy products, a percentage that rose to 71?2% during children’s reinforced protection viewing time. Over half the commercials were for less healthy products, a proportion that rose to over two-thirds during the hours of special protection for children. This suggests that applying the UKNPM to regulate food advertising during this slot would entail the withdrawal of most food commercials in Spain. TV advertising of products with low nutritional quality should be restricted.

Towards the development of a comprehensive framework: Qualitative systematic survey of definitions of clinical research quality

PubMed Central

von Niederhäusern, Belinda; Schandelmaier, Stefan; Mi Bonde, Marie; Brunner, Nicole; Hemkens, Lars G.; Rutquist, Marielle; Bhatnagar, Neera; Guyatt, Gordon H.; Pauli-Magnus, Christiane; Briel, Matthias

2017-01-01

Objective To systematically survey existing definitions, concepts, and criteria of clinical research quality, both developed by stakeholder groups as well as in the medical literature. This study serves as a first step in the development of a comprehensive framework for the quality of clinical research. Study design and setting We systematically and in duplicate searched definitions, concepts and criteria of clinical research quality on websites of stakeholders in clinical research until no further insights emerged and in MEDLINE up to February 2015. Stakeholders included governmental bodies, regulatory agencies, the pharmaceutical industry, academic and commercial contract research organizations, initiatives, research ethics committees, patient organizations and funding agencies from 13 countries. Data synthesis involved descriptive and qualitative analyses following the Framework Method on definitions, concepts, and criteria of clinical research quality. Descriptive codes were applied and grouped into clusters to identify common and stakeholder-specific quality themes. Results Stakeholder concepts on how to assure quality throughout study conduct or articles on quality assessment tools were common, generally with no a priori definition of the term quality itself. We identified a total of 20 explicit definitions of clinical research quality including varying quality dimensions and focusing on different stages in the clinical research process. Encountered quality dimensions include ethical conduct, patient safety/rights/priorities, internal validity, precision of results, generalizability or external validity, scientific and societal relevance, transparency and accessibility of information, research infrastructure and sustainability. None of the definitions appeared to be comprehensive either in terms of quality dimensions, research stages, or stakeholder perspectives. Conclusion Clinical research quality is often discussed but rarely defined. A framework defining clinical research quality across stakeholders’ individual perspectives is desirable to facilitate discussion, assessment, and improvement of quality at all stages of clinical research. PMID:28715491

Towards the development of a comprehensive framework: Qualitative systematic survey of definitions of clinical research quality.

PubMed

von Niederhäusern, Belinda; Schandelmaier, Stefan; Mi Bonde, Marie; Brunner, Nicole; Hemkens, Lars G; Rutquist, Marielle; Bhatnagar, Neera; Guyatt, Gordon H; Pauli-Magnus, Christiane; Briel, Matthias

2017-01-01

To systematically survey existing definitions, concepts, and criteria of clinical research quality, both developed by stakeholder groups as well as in the medical literature. This study serves as a first step in the development of a comprehensive framework for the quality of clinical research. We systematically and in duplicate searched definitions, concepts and criteria of clinical research quality on websites of stakeholders in clinical research until no further insights emerged and in MEDLINE up to February 2015. Stakeholders included governmental bodies, regulatory agencies, the pharmaceutical industry, academic and commercial contract research organizations, initiatives, research ethics committees, patient organizations and funding agencies from 13 countries. Data synthesis involved descriptive and qualitative analyses following the Framework Method on definitions, concepts, and criteria of clinical research quality. Descriptive codes were applied and grouped into clusters to identify common and stakeholder-specific quality themes. Stakeholder concepts on how to assure quality throughout study conduct or articles on quality assessment tools were common, generally with no a priori definition of the term quality itself. We identified a total of 20 explicit definitions of clinical research quality including varying quality dimensions and focusing on different stages in the clinical research process. Encountered quality dimensions include ethical conduct, patient safety/rights/priorities, internal validity, precision of results, generalizability or external validity, scientific and societal relevance, transparency and accessibility of information, research infrastructure and sustainability. None of the definitions appeared to be comprehensive either in terms of quality dimensions, research stages, or stakeholder perspectives. Clinical research quality is often discussed but rarely defined. A framework defining clinical research quality across stakeholders' individual perspectives is desirable to facilitate discussion, assessment, and improvement of quality at all stages of clinical research.

Long-Term Effects of Red- and Blue-Light Emitting Diodes on Leaf Anatomy and Photosynthetic Efficiency of Three Ornamental Pot Plants

PubMed Central

Zheng, Liang; Van Labeke, Marie-Christine

2017-01-01

Light quality critically affects plant development and growth. Development of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) enables the use of narrow band red and/or blue wavelengths as supplementary lighting in ornamental production. Yet, long periods under these wavelengths will affect leaf morphology and physiology. Leaf anatomy, stomatal traits, and stomatal conductance, leaf hydraulic conductance (Kleaf), and photosynthetic efficiency were investigated in three ornamental pot plants, namely Cordyline australis (monocot), Ficus benjamina (dicot, evergreen leaves), and Sinningia speciosa (dicot, deciduous leaves) after 8 weeks under LED light. Four light treatments were applied at 100 μmol m−2 s−1 and a photoperiod of 16 h using 100% red (R), 100% blue (B), 75% red with 25% blue (RB), and full spectrum white light (W), respectively. B and RB resulted in a greater maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm) and quantum efficiency (ΦPSII) in all species compared to R and W and this correlated with a lower biomass under R. B increased the stomatal conductance compared with R. This increase was linked to an increasing stomatal index and/or stomatal density but the stomatal aperture area was unaffected by the applied light quality. Leaf hydraulic conductance (Kleaf) was not significantly affected by the applied light qualities. Blue light increased the leaf thickness of F. benjamina, and a relative higher increase in palisade parenchyma was observed. Also in S. speciosa, increase in palisade parenchyma was found under B and RB, though total leaf thickness was not affected. Palisade parenchyma tissue thickness was correlated to the leaf photosynthetic quantum efficiency (ΦPSII). In conclusion, the role of blue light addition in the spectrum is essential for the normal anatomical leaf development which also impacts the photosynthetic efficiency in the three studied species. PMID:28611818

Weld quality inspection using laser-EMAT ultrasonic system and C-scan method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Lei; Ume, I. Charles

2014-02-01

Laser/EMAT ultrasonic technique has attracted more and more interests in weld quality inspection because of its non-destructive and non-contact characteristics. When ultrasonic techniques are used to detect welds joining relative thin plates, the dominant ultrasonic waves present in the plates are Lamb waves, which propagate all through the thickness. Traditional Time of Flight(ToF) method loses its power. The broadband nature of laser excited ultrasound plus dispersive and multi-modal characteristic of Lamb waves make the EMAT acquired signals very complicated in this situation. Challenge rises in interpreting the received signals and establishing relationship between signal feature and weld quality. In this paper, the laser/EMAT ultrasonic technique was applied in a C-scan manner to record full wave propagation field over an area close to the weld. Then the effect of weld defect on the propagation field of Lamb waves was studied visually by watching an movie resulted from the recorded signals. This method was proved to be effective to detect the presence of hidden defect in the weld. Discrete wavelet transform(DWT) was applied to characterize the acquired ultrasonic signals and ideal band-pass filter was used to isolate wave components most sensitive to the weld defect. Different interactions with the weld defect were observed for different wave components. Thus this C-Scan method, combined with DWT and ideal band-pass filter, proved to be an effective methodology to experimentally study interactions of various laser excited Lamb Wave components with weld defect. In this work, the method was demonstrated by inspecting a hidden local incomplete penetration in weld. In fact, this method can be applied to study Lamb Wave interactions with any type of structural inconsistency. This work also proposed a ideal filtered based method to effectively reduce the total experimental time.

Characterizing groundwater quality ranks for drinking purposes in Sylhet district, Bangladesh, using entropy method, spatial autocorrelation index, and geostatistics.

PubMed

Islam, Abu Reza Md Towfiqul; Ahmed, Nasir; Bodrud-Doza, Md; Chu, Ronghao

2017-12-01

Drinking water is susceptible to the poor quality of contaminated water affecting the health of humans. Thus, it is an essential study to investigate factors affecting groundwater quality and its suitability for drinking uses. In this paper, the entropy theory, multivariate statistics, spatial autocorrelation index, and geostatistics are applied to characterize groundwater quality and its spatial variability in the Sylhet district of Bangladesh. A total of 91samples have been collected from wells (e.g., shallow, intermediate, and deep tube wells at 15-300-m depth) from the study area. The results show that NO 3 - , then SO 4 2- , and As are the most contributed parameters influencing the groundwater quality according to the entropy theory. The principal component analysis (PCA) and correlation coefficient also confirm the results of the entropy theory. However, Na + has the highest spatial autocorrelation and the most entropy, thus affecting the groundwater quality. Based on the entropy-weighted water quality index (EWQI) and groundwater quality index (GWQI) classifications, it is observed that 60.45 and 53.86% of water samples are classified as having an excellent to good qualities, while the remaining samples vary from medium to extremely poor quality domains for drinking purposes. Furthermore, the EWQI classification provides the more reasonable results than GWQIs due to its simplicity, accuracy, and ignoring of artificial weight. A Gaussian semivariogram model has been chosen to the best fit model, and groundwater quality indices have a weak spatial dependence, suggesting that both geogenic and anthropogenic factors play a pivotal role in spatial heterogeneity of groundwater quality oscillations.

Factors influencing nurse-assessed quality nursing care: A cross-sectional study in hospitals.

PubMed

Liu, Ying; Aungsuroch, Yupin

2018-04-01

To propose a hypothesized theoretical model and apply it to examine the structural relationships among work environment, patient-to-nurse ratio, job satisfaction, burnout, intention to leave and quality nursing care. Improving quality nursing care is a first consideration in nursing management globally. A better understanding of factors influencing quality nursing care can help hospital administrators implement effective programmes to improve quality of services. Although certain bivariate correlations have been found between selected factors and quality nursing care in different study models, no studies have examined the relationships among work environment, patient-to-nurse ratio, job satisfaction, burnout, intention to leave and quality nursing care in a more comprehensive theoretical model. A cross-sectional survey. The questionnaires were collected from 510 Chinese nurses in four Chinese tertiary hospitals in January 2015. The validity and internal consistency reliability of research instruments were evaluated. Structural equation modelling was used to test a theoretical model. The findings revealed that the data supported the theoretical model. Work environment had a large total effect size on quality nursing care. Burnout largely and directly influenced quality nursing care, which was followed by work environment and patient-to-nurse ratio. Job satisfaction indirectly affected quality nursing care through burnout. This study shows how work environment past burnout and job satisfaction influences quality nursing care. Apart from nurses' work conditions of work environment and patient-to-nurse ratio, hospital administrators should pay more attention to nurse outcomes of job satisfaction and burnout when designing intervention programmes to improve quality nursing care. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Cultural values and health service quality in China.

PubMed

Polsa, Pia; Fuxiang, Wei; Sääksjärvi, Maria; Shuyuan, Pei

2013-01-01

Several service quality studies show how cultural features may influence the way service quality is perceived. However, few studies specifically describe culture's influence on health service quality. Also, there are few studies that take into account patients' health service quality perceptions. This article seeks to present a first step to fill these gaps by examining patients' cultural values and their health service quality assessments. The study draws on published work and applies its ideas to Chinese healthcare settings. Data consist of hospital service perceptions in the People's Republic of China (PRC), a society that is socially, economically and culturally undergoing major changes. In total, 96 patients were surveyed. Data relationships were tested using partial least square (PLS) analysis. Findings show that Chinese patients' cultural values and their health service assessments are related and that the cultural values themselves seem to be changing. Additionally, further analyses provided interesting results pointing to which cultural values influenced service quality perceptions. The strongest service quality predictor was power distance. The sample is relatively small and collected from only one major hospital in China. Therefore, future research should extend the sample size and scope. Follow-up research could also include cross-cultural investigations of perceived health service quality to substantiate cultural influences on health service quality perceptions. In line with similar research in other contexts, the study confirms that power distance has a significant relationship with service quality perceptions. The study contributes to existing health service literature by offering patients' views on health service quality and by describing relationships between health service perceptions and cultural values--the study's main contribution.

Forecasting of high voltage insulation performance: Testing of recommended potting materials and of capacitors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bever, R. S.

1984-01-01

Nondestructive high voltage test techniques (mostly electrical methods) are studied to prevent total or catastrophic breakdown of insulation systems under applied high voltage in space. Emphasis is on the phenomenon of partial breakdown or partial discharge (P.D.) as a symptom of insulation quality, notably partial discharge testing under D.C. applied voltage. Many of the electronic parts and high voltage instruments in space experience D.C. applied stress in service, and application of A.C. voltage to any portion thereof would be prohibited. Suggestions include: investigation of the ramp test method for D.C. partial discharge measurements; testing of actual flight-type insulation specimen; perfect plotting resin samples with controlled defects for test; several types of plotting resins and recommendations of the better ones from the electrical characteristics; thermal and elastic properties are also considered; testing of commercial capaciters; and approximate acceptance/rejection/rerating criteria for sample test elements for space use, based on D.C. partial discharge.

Quantifying Solar Cell Cracks in Photovoltaic Modules by Electroluminescence Imaging

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Spataru, Sergiu; Hacke, Peter; Sera, Dezso

2015-06-14

This article proposes a method for quantifying the percentage of partially and totally disconnected solar cell cracks by analyzing electroluminescence images of the photovoltaic module taken under high- and low-current forward bias. The method is based on the analysis of the module's electroluminescence intensity distribution, applied at module and cell level. These concepts are demonstrated on a crystalline silicon photovoltaic module that was subjected to several rounds of mechanical loading and humidity-freeze cycling, causing increasing levels of solar cell cracks. The proposed method can be used as a diagnostic tool to rate cell damage or quality of modules after transportation.more » Moreover, the method can be automated and used in quality control for module manufacturers, installers, or as a diagnostic tool by plant operators and diagnostic service providers.« less

Isolation of high-quality total RNA from leaves of Myrciaria dubia "CAMU CAMU".

PubMed

Gómez, Juan Carlos Castro; Reátegui, Alina Del Carmen Egoavil; Flores, Julián Torres; Saavedra, Roberson Ramírez; Ruiz, Marianela Cobos; Correa, Sixto Alfredo Imán

2013-01-01

Myrciaria dubia is a main source of vitamin C for people in the Amazon region. Molecular studies of M. dubia require high-quality total RNA from different tissues. So far, no protocols have been reported for total RNA isolation from leaves of this species. The objective of this research was to develop protocols for extracting high-quality total RNA from leaves of M. dubia. Total RNA was purified following two modified protocols developed for leaves of other species (by Zeng and Yang, and by Reid et al.) and one modified protocol developed for fruits of the studied species (by Silva). Quantity and quality of purified total RNA were assessed by spectrophotometric and electrophoretic analysis. Additionally, quality of total RNA was evaluated with reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). With these three modified protocols we were able to isolate high-quality RNA (A260nm/A280nm >1.9 and A260nm/A230nm >2.0). Highest yield was produced with the Zeng and Yang modified protocol (384±46µg ARN/g fresh weight). Furthermore, electrophoretic analysis showed the integrity of isolated RNA and the absence of DNA. Another proof of the high quality of our purified RNA was the successful cDNA synthesis and amplification of a segment of the M. dubia actin 1 gene. We report three modified protocols for isolation total RNA from leaves of M. dubia. The modified protocols are easy, rapid, low in cost, and effective for high-quality and quantity total RNA isolation suitable for cDNA synthesis and polymerase chain reaction.

Characterization of Argentine honeys on the basis of their mineral content and some typical quality parameters

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background The levels of 19 elements (As, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Se, Tl, U, V, Zn) from sixteen different Argentine production sites of unifloral [eucalyptus (Eucaliptus rostrata), chilca (Baccharis salicifolia), Algarrobo (Prosopis sp.), mistol (Ziziphus mistol) and citric] and multifloral honeys were measured with the aim to test the quality of the selected samples. Typical quality parameters of honeys were also determined (pH, sugar content, moisture). Mineral elements were determined by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS DRC). We also evaluated the suitability of honey as a possible biomonitor of environmental pollution. Thus, the sites were classified through cluster analysis (CA) and then pattern recognition methods such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and discriminant analysis (DA) were applied. Results Mean values for quality parameters were: pH, 4.12 and 3.81; sugar 82.1 and 82.0 °brix; moisture, 16.90 and 17.00% for unifloral and multifloral honeys respectively. The water content showed good maturity. Likewise, the other parameters confirmed the good quality of the honeys analysed. Potassium was quantitatively the most abundant metal, accounting for 92,5% of the total metal contents with an average concentration of 832.0 and 816.2 μg g-1 for unifloral and multifloral honeys respectively. Sodium was the second most abundant major metal in honeys with a mean value of 32.16 and 33.19 μg g-1 for unifloral and multifloral honeys respectively. Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu were present at low-intermediate concentrations. For the other 11 trace elements determined in this study (As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Se, Tl, U and V), the mean concentrations were very low or below of the LODs. The sites were classified through CA by using elements’ and physicochemical parameters data, then DA on the PCA factors was applied. Dendrograms identified three main groups. PCA explained 52.03% of the total variability with the first two factors. Conclusions In general, there are no evidences of pollution for the analysed honeys. The analytical results obtained for the Argentine honeys indicate the products’ high quality. In fact, most of the toxic elements were below LODs. The chemometric analysis combining CA, DA and PCA showed their aptness as useful tools for honey’s classification. Eventually, this study confirms that the use of honey as biomonitor of environmental contamination is not reliable for sites with low levels of contamination. PMID:25057287

Quality assurance, an administrative means to a managerial end: Part I. A historical overview.

PubMed

Clark, G B

1990-01-01

Quality has become the hallmark of industrial excellence. Many diverse factors have heightened national concern about managing quality control throughout the health-care industry, including laboratory services. Industry-wide focus on quality control has created a need for an administrative program to evaluate its effectiveness. That program is medical quality assurance. Because of national and industry-wide concern, development of quality assurance theory has gained increasing importance in medical accreditation and management circles. Scrutiny of the application of quality assurance has become particularly prominent during accreditation inspections. Implementing quality assurance programs now demands more of already finite resources. The professional laboratory manager should understand how quality assurance has developed in the United States during the past 150 years. The well-informed manager should recognize why the health-care industry only recently began to develop its own expertise in quality assurance. It is also worthwhile to understand how heavily health care has relied on the lessons learned in the non-health-care sector. This three-part series will present information that will help in applying quality assurance more effectively as a management tool in the medical laboratory. This first part outlines the early industrial, socioeconomic, and medicolegal background of quality assurance. Terminology is defined with some distinction made between the terms management and administration. The second part will address current accreditation requirements. Special emphasis will be placed on the practical application of accreditation guidelines, providing a template for quality assurance methods in the medical laboratory. The third part will provide an overview of quality assurance as a total management tool with some suggestions for developing and implementing a quality assurance program.

The Influence of Observation Errors on Analysis Error and Forecast Skill Investigated with an Observing System Simulation Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prive, N. C.; Errico, R. M.; Tai, K.-S.

2013-01-01

The Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) observing system simulation experiment (OSSE) framework is used to explore the response of analysis error and forecast skill to observation quality. In an OSSE, synthetic observations may be created that have much smaller error than real observations, and precisely quantified error may be applied to these synthetic observations. Three experiments are performed in which synthetic observations with magnitudes of applied observation error that vary from zero to twice the estimated realistic error are ingested into the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS-5) with Gridpoint Statistical Interpolation (GSI) data assimilation for a one-month period representing July. The analysis increment and observation innovation are strongly impacted by observation error, with much larger variances for increased observation error. The analysis quality is degraded by increased observation error, but the change in root-mean-square error of the analysis state is small relative to the total analysis error. Surprisingly, in the 120 hour forecast increased observation error only yields a slight decline in forecast skill in the extratropics, and no discernable degradation of forecast skill in the tropics.

[Quality of sleep and selective attention in university students: descriptive cross-sectional study].

PubMed

Fontana, Silvia Alicia; Raimondi, Waldina; Rizzo, María Laura

2014-09-05

Sleep quality not only refers to sleeping well at night, but also includes appropriate daytime functioning. Poor quality of sleep can affect a variety of attention processes. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the relationship between the perceived quality of sleep and selective focus in a group of college students. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in a group of 52 Argentinian college students of the Universidad Adventista del Plata. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Continuous Performance Test and the Trail Making Test were applied. The main results indicate that students sleep an average of 6.48 hours. Generally half of the population tested had a good quality of sleep. However, the dispersion seen in some components demonstrates the heterogeneity of the sample in these variables. It was observed that the evaluated attention processes yielded different levels of alteration in the total sample: major variability in the process of process and in the divided-attention processes were detected. A lower percentage of alteration was observed in the process of attention support. Poor quality of sleep has more impact in the sub processes with greater participation of corticocortical circuits (selective and divided attention) and greater involvement of the prefrontal cortex. Fewer difficulties were found in the attention-support processes that rely on subcortical regions and have less frontal involvement.

Measuring Data Quality Through a Source Data Verification Audit in a Clinical Research Setting.

PubMed

Houston, Lauren; Probst, Yasmine; Humphries, Allison

2015-01-01

Health data has long been scrutinised in relation to data quality and integrity problems. Currently, no internationally accepted or "gold standard" method exists measuring data quality and error rates within datasets. We conducted a source data verification (SDV) audit on a prospective clinical trial dataset. An audit plan was applied to conduct 100% manual verification checks on a 10% random sample of participant files. A quality assurance rule was developed, whereby if >5% of data variables were incorrect a second 10% random sample would be extracted from the trial data set. Error was coded: correct, incorrect (valid or invalid), not recorded or not entered. Audit-1 had a total error of 33% and audit-2 36%. The physiological section was the only audit section to have <5% error. Data not recorded to case report forms had the greatest impact on error calculations. A significant association (p=0.00) was found between audit-1 and audit-2 and whether or not data was deemed correct or incorrect. Our study developed a straightforward method to perform a SDV audit. An audit rule was identified and error coding was implemented. Findings demonstrate that monitoring data quality by a SDV audit can identify data quality and integrity issues within clinical research settings allowing quality improvement to be made. The authors suggest this approach be implemented for future research.

Indices for the assessment of nutritional quality of meals: a systematic review.

PubMed

Gorgulho, B M; Pot, G K; Sarti, F M; Marchioni, D M

2016-06-01

This systematic review aimed to synthesise information on indices developed to evaluate nutritional quality of meals. A strategy for systematic search of the literature was developed using keywords related to assessment of meal quality. Databases searched included ScienceDirect, PubMed, Lilacs, SciELO, Scopus, Cochrane, Embase and Google Scholar. The literature search resulted in seven different meal quality indices. Each article was analysed in order to identify the following items: authors, country, year, study design, population characteristics, type of meal evaluated, dietary assessment method, characteristics evaluated (nutrients or food items), score range, index components, nutritional references, correlations performed, validation and relationship with an outcome (if existing). Two studies developed instruments to assess the quality of breakfast, three analysed lunch, one evaluated dinner and one was applied to all types of meals and snacks. All meal quality indices reviewed were based on the evaluation of presence or absence of food groups and relative contributions of nutrients, according to food-based guidelines or nutrient references, adapting the daily dietary recommendations to one specific meal. Most of the indices included three items as components for meal quality assessment: (I) total fat or some specific type of fat, (II) fruits and vegetables and (III) cereals or whole grains. This systematic review indicates aspects that need further research, particularly the numerous approaches to assessing meals considering different foods and nutrients, and the need for validation studies of meal indices.

Characterization of the initial level and migration of silicone oil lubricant in empty prefilled syringes for biologics using infrared spectroscopy.

PubMed

Bee, Jared S; Frey, Vadim V; Javed, Urooj; Chung, Jonathan; Corcoran, Marta L; Roussel, Paul S; Krause, Stephan O; Cash, Patricia W; Bishop, Steven M; Dimitrova, Mariana N

2014-01-01

Glass prefillable syringes are lubricated with silicone oil to ensure functionality and a consistent injection for the end user. If excessive silicone is applied, droplets could potentially result in aggregation of sensitive biopharmaceuticals or clouding of the solution. Therefore, monitoring and optimization of the applied silicone layer is critical for prefilled syringe development. The hydrophobic properties of silicone oil, the potential for assay interference, and the very small quantities applied to prefilled syringes present a challenge for the development of a suitable assay. In this work we present a rapid and simple Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy method for quantitation of total silicone levels applied to prefilled syringes. Level-dependent silicone oil migration occurred over time for empty prefilled syringes stored tip-up. However, migration from all prefilled syringes with between 0.25 and 0.8 mg of initial silicone oil resulted in a stable limiting minimum level of between 0.15 and 0.26 mg of silicone in the syringe reached after 1 to 4 years of empty tip-up storage. The results of the FTIR assay correlated well with non-destructive reflectometry characterization of the syringes. This assay can provide valuable data for selection of a robust initial silicone oil target and quality control of prefilled syringes intended for biopharmaceuticals. Glass prefillable syringes are lubricated with silicone oil to ensure functionality and a consistent injection for the end user. If excessive silicone is applied, droplets could potentially result in aggregation of sensitive biopharmaceuticals or clouding of the solution. Therefore, monitoring and optimization of the applied silicone layer is critical for prefilled syringe development. The hydrophobic properties of silicone oil, the potential for assay interference, and the very small quantities applied to prefilled syringes present a challenge for the development of a suitable assay. In this work we present a rapid and simple Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy method for quantitation of total silicone levels applied to prefilled syringes. Level-dependent silicone oil migration occurred over time for empty prefilled syringes stored tip-up. However, migration from all prefilled syringes with between 0.25 and 0.8 mg of initial silicone oil resulted in a stable limiting minimum level of between 0.15 and 0.26 mg of silicone in the syringe reached after 1 to 4 years of empty tip-up storage. The results of the FTIR assay correlated well with non-destructive reflectometry characterization of the syringes. This assay can provide valuable data for selection of a robust initial silicone oil target and quality control of prefilled syringes intended for biopharmaceuticals. © PDA, Inc. 2014.

Delayed post-harvest ripening-associated changes in Manilkara zapota L. var. Kalipatti with composite edible coating.

PubMed

Vishwasrao, Chandrahas; Ananthanarayan, Laxmi

2017-01-01

There has been limited research on extending the shelf-life of sapota (Manilkara zapota L. var. Kalipatti) fruit. An edible coating made up of methyl cellulose (MC) and palm oil (PO) was applied to study the extension in shelf-life. Changes in physical and chemical properties of fruit were studied along with peroxidase (POD), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and pectin methylesterase (PME) activities during post-harvest ripening of sapota. The fruits coated with 15 g L -1 MC and 11.25 g L -1 PO showed significant (P < 0.05) delay in physiological weight loss, decrease in fruit firmness losses as well as slower fruit darkening. The coating on the fruits resulted in better retention of ascorbic acid, delayed the loss of total phenolic content, and delayed the increase in total soluble solids and total reducing sugars as compared to control fruits. The coating either delayed or reduced the enzyme activities of POD, PPO and PME of the fruit. The results suggest that edible coating made up of MC-PO has potential to maintain the quality of sapota fruit. The edible coating extended the shelf-life of sapota fruit by 3 days preserving fruit quality up to 7 days at 24 ± 1 °C and 65 ± 5 %RH. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Isolation of high-quality total RNA from rumen anaerobic bacteria and fungi, and subsequent detection of glycoside hydrolases.

PubMed

Wang, Pan; Qi, Meng; Barboza, Perry; Leigh, Mary Beth; Ungerfeld, Emilio; Selinger, L Brent; McAllister, Tim A; Forster, Robert J

2011-07-01

The rumen is one of the most powerful fibrolytic fermentation systems known. Gene expression analyses, such as reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR), microarrays, and metatranscriptomics, are techniques that could significantly expand our understanding of this ecosystem. The ability to isolate and stabilize representative RNA samples is critical to obtaining reliable results with these procedures. In this study, we successfully isolated high-quality total RNA from the solid phase of ruminal contents by using an improved RNA extraction method. This method is based on liquid nitrogen grinding of whole ruminal solids without microbial detachment and acid guanidinium - phenol - chloroform extraction combined with column purification. Yields of total RNA were as high as 150 µg per g of fresh ruminal content. The typical large subunit/small subunit rRNA ratio ranged from 1.8 to 2.0 with an RNA integrity number (Agilent Technologies) greater than 8.5. By eliminating the detachment step, the resulting RNA was more representative of the complete ecosystem. Our improved method removed a major barrier limiting analysis of rumen microbial function from a gene expression perspective. The polyA-tailed eukaryotic mRNAs obtained have successfully been applied to next-generation sequencing, and metatranscriptomic analysis of the solid fraction of rumen contents revealed abundant sequences related to rumen fungi.

Extractions of High Quality RNA from the Seeds of Jerusalem Artichoke and Other Plant Species with High Levels of Starch and Lipid.

PubMed

Mornkham, Tanupat; Wangsomnuk, Preeya Puangsomlee; Fu, Yong-Bi; Wangsomnuk, Pinich; Jogloy, Sanun; Patanothai, Aran

2013-04-29

Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) is an important tuber crop. However, Jerusalem artichoke seeds contain high levels of starch and lipid, making the extraction of high-quality RNA extremely difficult and the gene expression analysis challenging. This study was aimed to improve existing methods for extracting total RNA from Jerusalem artichoke dry seeds and to assess the applicability of the improved method in other plant species. Five RNA extraction methods were evaluated on Jerusalem artichoke seeds and two were modified. One modified method with the significant improvement was applied to assay seeds of diverse Jerusalem artichoke accessions, sunflower, rice, maize, peanut and marigold. The effectiveness of the improved method to extract total RNA from seeds was assessed using qPCR analysis of four selected genes. The improved method of Ma and Yang (2011) yielded a maximum RNA solubility and removed most interfering substances. The improved protocol generated 29 to 41 µg RNA/30 mg fresh weight. An A260/A280 ratio of 1.79 to 2.22 showed their RNA purity. Extracted RNA was effective for downstream applications such as first-stranded cDNA synthesis, cDNA cloning and qPCR. The improved method was also effective to extract total RNA from seeds of sunflower, rice, maize and peanut that are rich in polyphenols, lipids and polysaccharides.

Total quality management in orthodontic practice.

PubMed

Atta, A E

1999-12-01

Quality is the buzz word for the new Millennium. Patients demand it, and we must serve it. Yet one must identify it. Quality is not imaging or public relations; it is a business process. This short article presents quality as a balance of three critical notions: core clinical competence, perceived values that our patients seek and want, and the cost of quality. Customer satisfaction is a variable that must be identified for each practice. In my practice, patients perceive quality as communication and time, be it treatment or waiting time. Time is a value and cost that must be managed effectively. Total quality management is a business function; it involves diagnosis, design, implementation, and measurement of the process, the people, and the service. Kazien is a function that reduces value services, eliminates waste, and manages time and cost in the process. Total quality management is a total commitment for continuous improvement.

Quality of Persian Addiction Websites: A Survey Based on Silberg, Discern and Wqet Instruments (2011)

PubMed Central

Zahedi, Razieh; Taheri, Behjat; Shahrzadi, Leila; Tazhibi, Mehdi; Ashrafi-rizi, Hasan

2013-01-01

Background Nowadays, World Wide Web is an accessible and widespread resource to attain medical information. So physicians and health institutions try to inform patients about different domains of medicine through Web. Addiction is a noteworthy subject in medicine and a controversial issue among them. However, quality of health information on the internet is doubtful. The objective of this study is to determine the quality of Persian addiction websites to offer recommendation for their improvement. Methods This was survey and an applied study that the study population was all Persian addiction websites. Sample of this study was 28 Persian addiction website which were chosen by searching Persian equivalences of 7 key terms (addiction, addict, addiction center, drug, treatment of addiction, recovery of addiction, addiction withdrawal) into the Google and Yahoo search engines. Finally, the websites were ranked based on the Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments. Data were analyzed with Excel software using descriptive statistics. Results The overall mean of websites in Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments were 1.42, 41.89, 64.57. Also the results showed that “Unit of Substance Abuse Treatment” belonging to Mashhad University of Medical Sciences was ranked first based on the Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments. 5 (from total of 9), 60 (from total of 80) and 82 (from total of normalized grade 82) were grades for this website for these instruments respectively. Conclusion It showed that the quality of Persian websites according to Silberg, DISCERN and WQET instruments was “low”, “more than half” and “very good” respectively. Not assigning date of entering data, author names, and references of information (authority) were most important missing characteristics of these websites. In addition, lack of interactive opportunities like chat rooms was another problem that leads to dissatisfaction of users. PMID:23572862

Quality Management Framework for Total Diet Study centres in Europe.

PubMed

Pité, Marina; Pinchen, Hannah; Castanheira, Isabel; Oliveira, Luisa; Roe, Mark; Ruprich, Jiri; Rehurkova, Irena; Sirot, Veronique; Papadopoulos, Alexandra; Gunnlaugsdóttir, Helga; Reykdal, Ólafur; Lindtner, Oliver; Ritvanen, Tiina; Finglas, Paul

2018-02-01

A Quality Management Framework to improve quality and harmonization of Total Diet Study practices in Europe was developed within the TDS-Exposure Project. Seventeen processes were identified and hazards, Critical Control Points and associated preventive and corrective measures described. The Total Diet Study process was summarized in a flowchart divided into planning and practical (sample collection, preparation and analysis; risk assessment analysis and publication) phases. Standard Operating Procedures were developed and implemented in pilot studies in five organizations. The flowchart was used to develop a quality framework for Total Diet Studies that could be included in formal quality management systems. Pilot studies operated by four project partners were visited by project assessors who reviewed implementation of the proposed framework and identified areas that could be improved. The quality framework developed can be the starting point for any Total Diet Study centre and can be used within existing formal quality management approaches. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ground-water flow and quality beneath sewage-sludge lagoons, and a comparison with the ground-water quality beneath a sludge-amended landfill, Marion County, Indiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bobay, K.E.

1988-01-01

The groundwater beneath eight sewage sludge lagoons, was studied to characterize the flow regime and to determine whether leachate had infiltrated into the glacio-fluvial sediments. Groundwater quality beneath the lagoons was compared with the groundwater quality beneath a landfill where sludge had been applied. The lagoons and landfills overlie outwash sand and gravel deposits separated by discontinuous clay layers. Shallow groundwater flows away from the lagoons and discharges into the White River. Deep groundwater discharges to the White River and flows southwest beneath Eagle Creek. After an accumulation of at least 2 inches of precipitation during 1 week, groundwater flow is temporarily reversed in the shallow aquifer, and all deep flow is along a relatively steep hydraulic gradient to the southwest. The groundwater is predominantly a calcium bicarbonate type, although ammonium accounts for more than 30% of the total cations in water from three wells. Concentrations of sodium, chloride, sulfate, iron, arsenic, boron, chemical oxygen demand, total dissolved solids, and methylene-blue-active substances indicate the presence of leachate in the groundwater. Concentrations of cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenium, and zinc were less than detection limits. The concentrations of 16 of 19 constituents or properties of groundwater beneath the lagoons are statistically different than groundwater beneath the landfill at the 0.05 level of significance. Only pH and concentrations of dissolved oxygen and bromide are higher in groundwater beneath the landfill than beneath the lagoons. 

Assessment of nutrient loadings of a large multipurpose prairie reservoir

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morales-Marín, L. A.; Wheater, H. S.; Lindenschmidt, K. E.

2017-07-01

The relatively low water flow velocities in reservoirs cause them to have high capacities for retaining sediments and pollutants, which can lead to a reduction in downstream nutrient loading. Hence, nutrients can progressively accumulate in reservoirs, resulting in the deterioration of aquatic ecosystems and water quality. Lake Diefenbaker (LD) is a large multipurpose reservoir, located on the South Saskatchewan River (SSR), that serves as a major source of freshwater in Saskatchewan, Canada. Over the past several years, changes in land use (e.g. expansion of urban areas and industrial developments) in the reservoir's catchment have heightened concerns about future water quality in the catchment and in the reservoir. Intensification of agricultural activities has led to an increase in augmented the application of manure and fertilizer for crops and pasture. Although previous research has attempted to quantify nutrient retention in LD, there is a knowledge gap related to the identification of major nutrient sources and quantification of nutrient export from the catchment at different spatial scales. Using the SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed (SPARROW) model, this gap has been addressed by assessing water quality regionally, and identifying spatial patterns of factors and processes that affect water quality in the LD catchment. Model results indicate that LD retains about 70% of the inflowing total nitrogen (TN) and 90% of the inflowing total phosphorus (TP) loads, of which fertilizer and manure applied to agricultural fields contribute the greatest proportion. The SPARROW model will be useful as a tool to guide the optimal implementation of nutrient management plans to reduce nutrient inputs to LD.

Dietary species richness as a measure of food biodiversity and nutritional quality of diets

PubMed Central

Raneri, Jessica E.; Smith, Katherine Walker; Kolsteren, Patrick; Van Damme, Patrick; Verzelen, Kaat; Penafiel, Daniela; Vanhove, Wouter; Kennedy, Gina; Hunter, Danny; Odhiambo, Francis Oduor; Ntandou-Bouzitou, Gervais; De Baets, Bernard; Ratnasekera, Disna; Ky, Hoang The; Remans, Roseline; Termote, Céline

2018-01-01

Biodiversity is key for human and environmental health. Available dietary and ecological indicators are not designed to assess the intricate relationship between food biodiversity and diet quality. We applied biodiversity indicators to dietary intake data from and assessed associations with diet quality of women and young children. Data from 24-hour diet recalls (55% in the wet season) of n = 6,226 participants (34% women) in rural areas from seven low- and middle-income countries were analyzed. Mean adequacies of vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, calcium, iron, and zinc and diet diversity score (DDS) were used to assess diet quality. Associations of biodiversity indicators with nutrient adequacy were quantified using multilevel models, receiver operating characteristic curves, and test sensitivity and specificity. A total of 234 different species were consumed, of which <30% were consumed in more than one country. Nine species were consumed in all countries and provided, on average, 61% of total energy intake and a significant contribution of micronutrients in the wet season. Compared with Simpson’s index of diversity and functional diversity, species richness (SR) showed stronger associations and better diagnostic properties with micronutrient adequacy. For every additional species consumed, dietary nutrient adequacy increased by 0.03 (P < 0.001). Diets with higher nutrient adequacy were mostly obtained when both SR and DDS were maximal. Adding SR to the minimum cutoff for minimum diet diversity improved the ability to detect diets with higher micronutrient adequacy in women but not in children. Dietary SR is recommended as the most appropriate measure of food biodiversity in diets. PMID:29255049

[Effects of Different Reclaimed Scenarios on Soil Microbe and Enzyme Activities in Mining Areas].

PubMed

Li, Jun-jian; Liu, Feng; Zhou, Xiao-mei

2015-05-01

Abstract: Ecological degradation in the mining areas is greatly aggravated in recent several decades, and ecological restoration has become the primary measure for the sustainable development. Soil microbe and enzyme activity are sensitive indices to evaluate soil quality. Ecological reconstruction was initiated in Antaibao mining area, and we tested soil physicochemical properties, microbial populations of azotobacteria, nitrifying-bacteria and denitrifying-bacteria, and enzyme activities (including sucrose, polyphenol oxidase, dehydrogenase and urease) under different regeneration scenarios. Regeneration scenarios had significant effects on soil physicochemical properties, microbial population and enzyme activities. Total nitrogen was strongly correlated with azotobacteria and nitrifying-bacteria, however, total nitrogen was not correlated with denitrifying-bacteria. Phenol oxidase activity was negatively correlated with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen, but other enzyme activities were positively correlated with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen. Principal Component Analysis ( PCA) was applied to analyze the integrated fertility index (IFI). The highest and lowest IFIs were in Robinia pseudoacacia-Pinus tabuliformis mixed forests and un-reclaimed area, respectively. R. pseudoacacia-P. tabuliformis mixed forests were feasible for reclaimed mining areas in semi-arid region Northwest Shanxi.

An Improved Weighted Partial Least Squares Method Coupled with Near Infrared Spectroscopy for Rapid Determination of Multiple Components and Anti-Oxidant Activity of Pu-Erh Tea.

PubMed

Liu, Ze; Xie, Hua-Lin; Chen, Lin; Huang, Jian-Hua

2018-05-02

Background: Pu-erh tea is a unique microbially fermented tea, which distinctive chemical constituents and activities are worthy of systematic study. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) coupled with suitable chemometrics approaches can rapidly and accurately quantitatively analyze multiple compounds in samples. Methods: In this study, an improved weighted partial least squares (PLS) algorithm combined with near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) was used to construct a fast calibration model for determining four main components, i.e., tea polyphenols, tea polysaccharide, total flavonoids, theanine content, and further determine the total antioxidant capacity of pu-erh tea. Results: The final correlation coefficients R square for tea polyphenols, tea polysaccharide, total flavonoids content, theanine content, and total antioxidant capacity were 0.8288, 0.8403, 0.8415, 0.8537 and 0.8682, respectively. Conclusions : The current study provided a comprehensive study of four main ingredients and activity of pu-erh tea, and demonstrated that NIR spectroscopy technology coupled with multivariate calibration analysis could be successfully applied to pu-erh tea quality assessment.

Comparison of five methods for determination of total plasma protein concentration.

PubMed

Okutucu, Burcu; Dinçer, Ayşşe; Habib, Omer; Zihnioglu, Figen

2007-08-01

Quantitation of exact total protein content is often a key step and is common to many applications in general biochemistry research and routine clinical laboratory practice. Before embarking on any type of protein analysis, particularly comparative techniques, it is important to accurately quantitate the amount of protein in the sample. In order to assess the quality of total protein estimation results, five methods were tested and were applied to the same pooled plasma sample. For this aim, Bradford (Coomassie Brilliant Blue), Lowry (Folin-Ciocalteau), Biüret, Pesce and Strande (Ponceau-S/TCA), and modified method of Schaffner-Weismann (Amido Black 10B) were used. The last two methods employ simultaneous precipitation of proteins with the acid containing dye solutions followed by dissolution of precipitate in a NaOH solution. It is shown that each assay has advantages and disadvantages relative to sensitivity, ease of performance, acceptance in literature, accuracy and reproducibility/coefficient of variation. All of the methods tested show a CV %<6. Besides pooled plasma, a known concentration of human serum albumin was also analyzed and discussed by means of standardization of plasma total protein content.

An approach to derive groundwater and stream threshold values for total nitrogen and ensure good ecological status of associated aquatic ecosystems - example from a coastal catchment to a vulnerable Danish estuary.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinsby, Klaus; Markager, Stiig; Kronvang, Brian; Windolf, Jørgen; Sonnenborg, Torben; Sørensen, Lærke

2015-04-01

Nitrate, which typically makes up the major part (~>90%) of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in groundwater and surface water, is the most frequent pollutant responsible for European groundwater bodies failing to meet the good status objectives of the European Water Framework Directive generally when comparing groundwater monitoring data with the nitrate quality standard of the Groundwater Directive (50 mg/l = the WHO drinking water standard). Still, while more than 50 % of the European surface water bodies do not meet the objective of good ecological status "only" 25 % of groundwater bodies do not meet the objective of good chemical status according to the river basin management plans reported by the EU member states. However, based on a study on interactions between groundwater, streams and a Danish estuary we argue that nitrate threshold values for aerobic groundwater often need to be significantly below the nitrate quality standard to ensure good ecological status of associated surface water bodies, and hence that the chemical status of European groundwater is worse than indicated by the present assessments. Here we suggest a methodology for derivation of groundwater and stream threshold values for total nitrogen ("nitrate") in a coastal catchment based on assessment of maximum acceptable nitrogen loadings (thresholds) to the associated vulnerable estuary. The applied method use existing information on agricultural practices and point source emissions in the catchment, groundwater, stream quantity and quality monitoring data that all feed data to an integrated groundwater and surface water modelling tool enabling us to conduct an assessment of total nitrogen loads and threshold concentrations derived to ensure/restore good ecological status of the investigated estuary. For the catchment to the Horsens estuary in Denmark we estimate the stream and groundwater thresholds for total nitrogen to be about 13 and 27 mg/l (~ 12 and 25 mg/l of nitrate). The shown example of deriving nitrogen threshold concentrations is for groundwater and streams in a coastal catchment discharging to a vulnerable estuary in Denmark, but the principles may be applied to large river basins with sub-catchments in several countries such as e.g. the Danube or the Rhine. In this case the relevant countries need to collaborate on derivation of nitrogen thresholds based on e.g. maximum acceptable nitrogen loadings to the Black Sea / the North Sea, and finally agree on thresholds for different parts of the river basin. Phosphorus is another nutrient which frequently results in or contributes to the eutrophication of surface waters. The transport and retention processes of total phosphorus (TP) is more complex than for nitrate (or alternatively total N), and presently we are able to establish TP thresholds for streams but not for groundwater. Derivation of TP thresholds is covered in an accompanying paper by Kronvang et al.

Strategy, Structure and Quality Service: Developing School Wide Quality Improvement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murgatroyd, Stephen

1991-01-01

Builds on earlier contributions to the literature on educational leadership and total quality management in education. Introduces two new tools--the service guarantee and the House of Quality, placing them in the context of strategic marketing, structural change, and other total quality management methods. (19 references) (MLH)

Quality at a Glance

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-01-01

This document contains summaries of fifteen of the well known books which underlie the Total Quality Management philosophy. Members of the DCASR St Louis staff offer comments and opinions on how the authors have presented the quality concept in todays business environment. Keywords: TQM (Total Quality Management ), Quality concepts, Statistical process control.

The Use of EST Expression Matrixes for the Quality Control of Gene Expression Data

PubMed Central

Milnthorpe, Andrew T.; Soloviev, Mikhail

2012-01-01

EST expression profiling provides an attractive tool for studying differential gene expression, but cDNA libraries' origins and EST data quality are not always known or reported. Libraries may originate from pooled or mixed tissues; EST clustering, EST counts, library annotations and analysis algorithms may contain errors. Traditional data analysis methods, including research into tissue-specific gene expression, assume EST counts to be correct and libraries to be correctly annotated, which is not always the case. Therefore, a method capable of assessing the quality of expression data based on that data alone would be invaluable for assessing the quality of EST data and determining their suitability for mRNA expression analysis. Here we report an approach to the selection of a small generic subset of 244 UniGene clusters suitable for identification of the tissue of origin for EST libraries and quality control of the expression data using EST expression information alone. We created a small expression matrix of UniGene IDs using two rounds of selection followed by two rounds of optimisation. Our selection procedures differ from traditional approaches to finding “tissue-specific” genes and our matrix yields consistency high positive correlation values for libraries with confirmed tissues of origin and can be applied for tissue typing and quality control of libraries as small as just a few hundred total ESTs. Furthermore, we can pick up tissue correlations between related tissues e.g. brain and peripheral nervous tissue, heart and muscle tissues and identify tissue origins for a few libraries of uncharacterised tissue identity. It was possible to confirm tissue identity for some libraries which have been derived from cancer tissues or have been normalised. Tissue matching is affected strongly by cancer progression or library normalisation and our approach may potentially be applied for elucidating the stage of normalisation in normalised libraries or for cancer staging. PMID:22412959

Simulating and evaluating best management practices for integrated landscape management scenarios in biofuel feedstock production

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ha, Miae; Wu, May

Sound crop and land management strategies can maintain land productivity and improve the environmental sustainability of agricultural crop and feedstock production. With this study, it evaluates a strategy of incorporating landscape design and management concepts into bioenergy feedstock production. It examines the effect of land conversion and agricultural best management practices (BMPs) on water quality (nutrients and suspended sediments) and hydrology. The strategy was applied to the watershed of the South Fork Iowa River in Iowa, where the focus was on converting low-productivity land to provide cellulosic biomass and implementing riparian buffers. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) wasmore » employed to simulate the impact at watershed and sub-basin scales. The study compared the representation of buffers by using trapping efficiency and area ratio methods in SWAT. Landscape design and management scenarios were developed to quantify water quality under (i) current land use, (ii) partial land conversion to switchgrass, and (iii) riparian buffer implementation. Results show that implementation of vegetative barriers and riparian buffer can trap the loss of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and sediment significantly. The effect increases with the increase of buffer area coverage. Implementing riparian buffer at 30 m width is able to produce 4 million liters of biofuels. When low-productivity land (15.2% of total watershed land area) is converted to grow switchgrass, suspended sediment, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and nitrate loadings are reduced by 69.3%, 55.5%, 46.1%, and 13.4%, respectively. The results highlight the significant role of lower-productivity land and buffers in cellulosic biomass and provide insights into the design of an integrated landscape with a conservation buffer for future bioenergy feedstock production.« less

Assessing Psycho-social Barriers to Rehabilitation in Injured Workers with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: Development and Item Properties of the Yellow Flag Questionnaire (YFQ).

PubMed

Salathé, Cornelia Rolli; Trippolini, Maurizio Alen; Terribilini, Livio Claudio; Oliveri, Michael; Elfering, Achim

2018-06-01

Purpose To develop a multidimensional scale to asses psychosocial beliefs-the Yellow Flag Questionnaire (YFQ)-aimed at guiding interventions for workers with chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. Methods Phase 1 consisted of item selection based on literature search, item development and expert consensus rounds. In phase 2, items were reduced with calculating a quality-score per item, using structure equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis on data from 666 workers. In phase 3, Cronbach's α, and Pearson correlations coefficients were computed to compare YFQ with disability, anxiety, depression and self-efficacy and the YFQ score based on data from 253 injured workers. Regressions of YFQ total score on disability, anxiety, depression and self-efficacy were calculated. Results After phase 1, the YFQ included 116 items and 15 domains. Further reductions of items in phase 2 by applying the item quality criteria reduced the total to 48 items. Phase factor analysis with structural equation modeling confirmed 32 items in seven domains: activity, work, emotions, harm & blame, diagnosis beliefs, co-morbidity and control. Cronbach α was 0.91 for the total score, between 0.49 and 0.81 for the 7 distinct scores of each domain, respectively. Correlations between YFQ total score ranged with disability, anxiety, depression and self-efficacy was .58, .66, .73, -.51, respectively. After controlling for age and gender the YFQ total score explained between R2 27% and R2 53% variance of disability, anxiety, depression and self-efficacy. Conclusions The YFQ, a multidimensional screening scale is recommended for use to assess psychosocial beliefs of workers with chronic MSK pain. Further evaluation of the measurement properties such as the test-retest reliability, responsiveness and prognostic validity is warranted.

Simulating and evaluating best management practices for integrated landscape management scenarios in biofuel feedstock production

DOE PAGES

Ha, Miae; Wu, May

2015-09-08

Sound crop and land management strategies can maintain land productivity and improve the environmental sustainability of agricultural crop and feedstock production. With this study, it evaluates a strategy of incorporating landscape design and management concepts into bioenergy feedstock production. It examines the effect of land conversion and agricultural best management practices (BMPs) on water quality (nutrients and suspended sediments) and hydrology. The strategy was applied to the watershed of the South Fork Iowa River in Iowa, where the focus was on converting low-productivity land to provide cellulosic biomass and implementing riparian buffers. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) wasmore » employed to simulate the impact at watershed and sub-basin scales. The study compared the representation of buffers by using trapping efficiency and area ratio methods in SWAT. Landscape design and management scenarios were developed to quantify water quality under (i) current land use, (ii) partial land conversion to switchgrass, and (iii) riparian buffer implementation. Results show that implementation of vegetative barriers and riparian buffer can trap the loss of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and sediment significantly. The effect increases with the increase of buffer area coverage. Implementing riparian buffer at 30 m width is able to produce 4 million liters of biofuels. When low-productivity land (15.2% of total watershed land area) is converted to grow switchgrass, suspended sediment, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and nitrate loadings are reduced by 69.3%, 55.5%, 46.1%, and 13.4%, respectively. The results highlight the significant role of lower-productivity land and buffers in cellulosic biomass and provide insights into the design of an integrated landscape with a conservation buffer for future bioenergy feedstock production.« less