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Diverse Quality (diverse + quality)
Selected AbstractsGuidelines for Systematic Review in Conservation and Environmental ManagementCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2006ANDREW S. PULLIN política de la conservación; práctica de la conservación; toma de decisiones; transferencia de conocimiento basado en evidencia Abstract:,An increasing number of applied disciplines are utilizing evidence-based frameworks to review and disseminate the effectiveness of management and policy interventions. The rationale is that increased accessibility of the best available evidence will provide a more efficient and less biased platform for decision making. We argue that there are significant benefits for conservation in using such a framework, but the scientific community needs to undertake and disseminate more systematic reviews before the full benefit can be realized. We devised a set of guidelines for undertaking formalized systematic review, based on a health services model. The guideline stages include planning and conducting a review, including protocol formation, search strategy, data inclusion, data extraction, and analysis. Review dissemination is addressed in terms of current developments and future plans for a Web-based open-access library. By the use of case studies we highlight critical modifications to guidelines for protocol formulation, data-quality assessment, data extraction, and data synthesis for conservation and environmental management. Ecological data presented significant but soluble challenges for the systematic review process, particularly in terms of the quantity, accessibility, and diverse quality of available data. In the field of conservation and environmental management there needs to be further engagement of scientists and practitioners to develop and take ownership of an evidence-based framework. Resumen:,Un mayor número de disciplinas está utilizando marcos de referencia basados en evidencias para revisar y diseminar la efectividad de las intervenciones de gestión y política. El fundamento es que la mayor accesibilidad de la evidencia mejor disponible proporcionará una plataforma de toma de decisiones menos sesgada y más eficiente. Argumentamos que hay beneficios significativos para la conservación al utilizar tal marco de referencia, pero la comunidad científica debe emprender y diseminar revisiones más sistemáticas antes de que se pueda comprender el beneficio completo. Diseñamos un conjunto de directrices para realizar revisiones sistemáticas formales, basado en un modelo de servicios de salud. Las etapas de las directrices incluyen la planificación y conducción de una revisión, incluyendo formación del protocolo, estrategias de búsqueda, inclusión de datos, extracción y análisis de datos. La diseminación de revisiones es abordada en términos del desarrollo actual y los planes futuros para una biblioteca de acceso abierto en la Web. Al utilizar estudios de caso resaltamos modificaciones críticas a las directrices para la formulación del protocolo, evaluación de la calidad de los datos, extracción de datos y síntesis de datos para la gestión ambiental y de conservación. Los datos ecológicos presentaron retos significativos, pero solucionables, para el proceso de revisión sistemática, particularmente en términos de la cantidad, accesibilidad y calidad de los datos disponibles. Se requiere un mayor compromiso de científicos y profesionales de la gestión ambiental y de conservación para desarrollar y apropiarse de un marco de referencia basado en evidencias. [source] Quality safeguards and regulation of online pharmaciesHEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 4 2004Benito ArruñadaArticle first published online: 25 JUN 200 Abstract Using econometric evidence, this article confirms that distribution of medicines online is split into two market segments of very diverse quality, and identifies the factors that drive quality and quality assurance in this activity. Unlike fraudulent, ,rogue,' websites, which offer scant guarantees and usually sell just a few medicines without prescription, online pharmacies offering insurance coverage and linked to conventional pharmacies typically sell a whole range of drugs, require third-party medical prescriptions and provide abundant information to patients. It is shown that, where online pharmacies are allowed to act legally, market forces enhance quality, as private insurers require professional standards, and specialized third parties make a business of certifying them. Furthermore, older online pharmacies and those running conventional operations offer higher quality, probably because of reputational investments. Overall, this evidence supports licensing online pharmacies, especially considering that prohibiting them is ineffective against fraudulent sites. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Quality of life of older people in residential care home: a literature reviewJOURNAL OF NURSING AND HEALTHCARE OF CHRONIC ILLNE SS: AN INTERNATIONAL INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009Diana TF Lee MSc, PRD (HCE) Aim., To integrate the research evidence on quality of life of older people living in a residential care home setting. Background. Residential care is provided for older people who are unable to live in their own home due to various health and social reasons. A number of studies have been published that have focused on diverse quality of life issues of residential care home elders. Consolidating the evidence from these studies may provide insights into enhancing quality of life of this particular group of older people. Design. A literature review of research evidence on quality of life issues among residential care home elders. Method. A systematic search of the literature published between 1994,January 2008 was undertaken to identify research evidence on quality of life of older people living in residential care home. Information about the study design, research objectives, study setting, sample characteristics, and key findings were extracted for comparison and integration. Three aspects about quality of life of the residential care home elders were identified: views of residential care home elders on quality of life, factors affecting quality of life of residential care home elders and methods to improve quality of life in residential care home elders. Results. Eighteen publications were identified. Older people perceived their ability to maintain independence, autonomy and individuality as the most important criteria for determining quality of life. Interventions designed to improve quality of life of older people living in residential facilities corresponded to these criteria. A range of interventions including a walking program, mental stimulation and environmental modification were proposed and evaluated to improve quality of life of residential care home elders. Among these interventions, environmental modification that targeted at improving the residential care homes and quality of services appears to be promising. Conclusion. Quality of life in residential care home elders is a complex issue that may be determined by the elders' independence, individuality and autonomy, and influenced by quality of residential care and facilities. Environmental modification appears to be a way to improve the quality of life of residential care home elders. Relevance to clinical practice. The knowledge of understanding quality of life of residential care home elders provides insights into the implementation of appropriate residential care services. Programs that aim to de-institutionalise the residential care home settings are important to the enhancement of residential care services. [source] Chain Connectivity and Conformational Variability of Polymers: Clues to an Adequate Thermodynamic Description of Their Solutions, 1MACROMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS, Issue 11 2003Maria Bercea Abstract This is the first of two parts investigating the Flory-Huggins interaction parameter, ,, as a function of composition and chain length. Part 1 encompasses experimental and theoretical work. The former comprises the synthesis of poly(dimethylsiloxane)s with different molar mass and the measurements of their second osmotic virial coefficients, A2, in solvents of diverse quality as a function of M via light scattering and osmotic pressures. The theoretical analysis is performed by subdividing the dilution process into two clearly separable steps. It yields the following expression for ,o, the , value in range of pair interaction: ,o,=,,,,,,,,. The parameter , measures the effect of contact formation between solvent molecules and polymer segments at fixed chain conformation, whereas the parameter , quantifies the contributions of the conformational changes taking place in response to dilution; , becomes zero for theta conditions. The influences of M are exclusively contained in the parameter , The new relation is capable of describing hitherto incomprehensible experimental findings, like a diminution of ,o with rising M. The evaluation of experimental information for different systems according to the established equation displays the existence of a linear interrelation between , and ,. Part 2 of this investigation presents the generalization of the present approach to solutions of arbitrary composition and discusses the physical meaning of the parameters in more detail. Conformational response, ,, as a function of ,, the interaction parameter for fixed conformation. [source] | ||||||||||