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Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Contact precautions shown to modify healthcare workers care delivery

Public release date: 11-Dec-2012
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Contact: Kate Enos
kenos@gymr.com
202-745-5071
Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America

Practice for reducing transmission of drug-resistant infections has unintended effects on care

CHICAGO (December 11, 2012) The prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) can help reduce patient morbidity and mortality, but a common prevention effort for patients with hard to treat infections known as contact precautions, can have positive and negative impacts on patient care. A new report published in the January issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, found when patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and other antibiotic-resistant bacteria are isolated in the hospital, these contact precautions reduced the number of visits by healthcare workers and outside visitors, but also increased compliance with hand hygiene upon exit of patients' rooms.

Contact precautions are infection control measures that require patients to be isolated in their own room or grouped with patients colonized or infected with the same multidrug resistant organism like Clostridium difficile or MRSA. Healthcare workers and visitors must wear gloves, gowns, and other protective equipment while with a patient on contact precautions.

Over a 19-month period, researchers conducted a prospective cohort study observing healthcare worker activity at four acute-care hospitals in the United States where trained observers performed "secret shopper" monitoring of healthcare worker activities during routine care using a standardized collection tool and fixed 1-hour observations periods.

Contact precautions were found to influence the actions of healthcare workers. Patients on contact precautions had 36.4 percent fewer visits from healthcare workers (2.78 visits/hour for patients on contact precautions and 4.37 visits/hour for those not on precautions). The difference was most evident among physicians and other providers, but less so in nurses. Importantly, healthcare workers were 15.8 percent more likely to perform hand hygiene upon exiting isolated patients' rooms.

The frequency of visitors was also impacted by contact precautions with 23 percent fewer visitors for patients on precautions.

"Our study shows that contact precautions for patients with drug resistant infections modifies the care they receive," said Daniel J. Morgan, MD, MS, a lead author of the study. "Fewer visits and increased hand hygiene are important in preventing the spread healthcare-associated infections, but clinicians and epidemiologists need to consider both the positive and negative aspects of these interventions, including the effect to patients' mental wellbeing and perception of care."

Past studies have linked contact precautions with adverse health events like patients developing delirium, increased risk of falls, or pressure ulcers.

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Daniel J. Morgan, MD, MS; Lisa Pineles, MA; Michelle Shardell, PhD; Margaret M. Graham, MPH; Shahrzad Mohammadi, BS, MPH; Graeme Forrest, MBBS; Heather S. Reisinger, PhD; Marin L. Schweizer, PhD;Eli N. Perencevich, MD, MS; "The Effect of Contact Precautions on Healthcare Worker Activity in Acute Care Hospitals." Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology 33:1 (January 2013).

Published through a partnership between the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America and The University of Chicago Press, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology provides original, peer-reviewed scientific articles for anyone involved with an infection control or epidemiology program in a hospital or healthcare facility. ICHE is ranked 15 out of 140 journals in its discipline in the latest Journal Citation Reports from Thomson Reuters.

SHEA is a professional society representing more than 2,000 physicians and other healthcare professionals around the world with expertise in healthcare epidemiology and infection prevention and control. SHEA's mission is to prevent and control healthcare-associated infections and advance the field of healthcare epidemiology. The society leads this field by promoting science and research and providing high-quality education and training in epidemiologic methods and prevention strategies. SHEA upholds the value and critical contributions of healthcare epidemiology to improving patient care and healthcare worker safety in all healthcare settings. Visit SHEA online at www.shea-online.org, www.facebook.com/SHEApreventingHAIs and @SHEA_Epi.

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Contact precautions shown to modify healthcare workers care delivery

Public release date: 11-Dec-2012
[ | E-mail |

Share ]

Contact: Kate Enos
kenos@gymr.com
202-745-5071
Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America

Practice for reducing transmission of drug-resistant infections has unintended effects on care

The frequency of visitors was also impacted by contact precautions with 23 percent fewer visitors for patients on precautions.

Past studies have linked contact precautions with adverse health events like patients developing delirium, increased risk of falls, or pressure ulcers.

###

[ | E-mail |

Share ]

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-12/sfhe-cps121112.php

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Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Deep divides in Dubai at UN talks on Internet

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) ? Talks over possible new U.N. regulations for the Internet were deeply divided Monday, with Russia and others advocating for more government sway while a U.S.-led bloc warned against rules that could restrict freedoms in cyberspace.

The Dubai conference, which wraps up later this week, is not empowered to bring about any immediate changes on how the Internet operates. But the U.S. and its backers argue that sanctioning greater government roles in Internet oversight could allow governments that already heavily censor Web traffic, such as China or Iran, to justify more restrictions and monitoring.

A high-powered U.S. delegation ? including representatives from tech giants such as Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. ? has tried to block all discussions of possible Internet regulations. The effort, however, has met strong headwinds from countries such as Russia that want a greater control over Net commerce and security.

So far, the closed-door talks have failed to find much common ground at the 193-nation U.N. International Telecommunications Union, which last updated its rules in 1988 before the Internet became a global force.

"What's happened in the conference is a variety of proposals have come in from other nations that get into the Internet, that look at Internet governance," said the head of the 123-member U.S. delegation, Ambassador Terry Kramer, in a video uploaded by organizers late Sunday. "It creates an open door for review of content and potential censorship there. It will create a chilling environment for the Internet."

For several days, U.S.-led envoys fought against a proposal submitted by the host United Arab Emirates, which last month passed sweeping new Internet laws outlawing social media posts that insult rulers or call for protests.

The proposal ? backed by countries such Russia, China and other Arab states ? was removed from discussion Monday, conference organizers said, after an uproar from Web activists supporting the American position. Among its provisions was a call for governments to have "equal rights to manage the Internet," including its technical workings, according to a text leaked by a website, wcitleaks.org. The site claimed to have access to meeting documents not yet made public.

It's unclear, however, whether the American views have gained the upper hand as the talks move into their final days. U.S. officials say other proposals that support a greater government voice in Internet affairs are still active.

Many experts on Internet technology believe the proposals could further squeeze the Net in countries where it is closely regulated, even though it won't fundamentally alter cyberspace in places with traditions of openness.

"These proposals would break what's working ?freedom of information and freedom of access," tech analyst Elise Ackerman wrote in a column for Forbes. "And they wouldn't help fix the parts of the Internet that need reinforcing, namely security and privacy."

She noted, however, the conference reflects a general push for more "international policymaking" as the U.S. dominance of the Internet weakens.

On Monday, the head of the U.N. telecoms agency, Hamadoun Toure, was scheduled to meet with civil society groups who have complained of being excluded from the talks.

Other issues at the conference also remain unresolved, including a European-led proposal to charge content providers for access to cross-border markets. The idea is strongly opposed by U.S. companies such as Google, Facebook Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and others. Supporters say the so-called "toll" could be used by developing countries to fund expansion of Internet services.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-12-10-ML-Dubai-Internet-Conference/id-d678ec78c51244deb152c173fae6d895

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Is Every Single Tech Ad Making the Same Basic Geometric Mistake?

You've seen the pose. One or two phones or tablets standing straight up. Another leaning up against the first at an angle. And somehow, they're all the exact same height. ARRRRGHHH. You learn this crap in middle school, right? Reddit pointed how absurd this seems earlier today. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/vy-8BrQ7T_8/is-every-single-tech-ad-making-the-same-basic-geometric-mistake

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CollegeBound Cares Supports Staten Island Project Homefront

Staten Island-based Education Publishing Company Donates Supplies to Troops Overseas

Staten Island, NY (PRWEB) December 10, 2012

The holidays are meant to be shared with loved ones, but the men and women bravely serving our country abroad may not have that privilege this year. That?s why CollegeBound Cares, the philanthropic arm of The College Bound Network (CBN), is pleased to once again participate in Staten Island Project Homefront?s donation drive for troops overseas.

Staten Island Project Homefront is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to supporting deployed military personnel, as well as the families of deployed soldiers, sailors, airmen, coast guardsmen, and marines. Every six weeks, care packages are sent to troops who are deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait. All branches of the armed forces are supported by the organization, with priority given to Staten Islanders, then New Yorkers, then all those in close support to them.

?I am very happy and honored that Staten Island Project Homefront is part of the CollegeBound Cares initiative,? says Aleksander Danilov, senior account manager at CBN, who spearheads the collection for CBN. ?This is the fourth year we?ll be doing the collection for the troops, and I couldn?t be prouder of The CollegeBound Network family for helping each year to provide what our troops need.?

CollegeBound Cares will be collecting donations for Staten Island Project Homefront until the week of December 24. Checks made out to Staten Island Project Homefront are accepted, along with the letters of encouragement for the troops, non-perishable food, snacks, candy, beverages, toiletries, canine items, clothing, etc. A full list of items can be found on CollegeBoundCares.com. For more information, contact Aleksander Danilov at 718-761-4800, ext. 138.

About The CollegeBound Network

Since 1987, The CollegeBound Network (CBN) has worked with America?s leading colleges, universities, and career schools in connecting learners with educational opportunities. More than 3 million surfers utilize CBN?s sites, including CollegeBound.net, CollegeSurfing.com, MyEducation.com, SpaBeautySchools.com, and others. CBN specializes in recruitment solutions for 1,000+ educational institutions and 3,500 campuses using websites, content, a dedicated Student Services division, social media, daily blogs, TV/radio campaigns, and more.

Gina LaGuardia
The CollegeBound Network
718-761-4800 125
Email Information

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/collegebound-cares-supports-staten-island-project-homefront-155624877.html

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Scientists name extinct lizard after Obama

Carl Buell

In this artist's conception, the carnivorous lizard Palaeosaniwa stalks a pair of hatchling Edmontosaurus dinosaurs as the snake Cerberophis looks on from above, and the lizard Obamadon watches from below. Meanwhile, in the background, a Tyrannosaurus rex encounters a Triceratops troop while an asteroid streaks down to Earth.

By Alan Boyle

The mass extinction that killed off the dinosaurs 65 million years ago also did in lots of lizards ? including a newly identified creature that's been named Obamadon gracilis in honor of President Barack Obama.

Obama already has a type of fish (Ethiostoma obama) and lichen (Caloplaca obamae) named after him, and now the recently re-elected leader of the free world can add a foot-long, slender-toothed casualty of the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction to the list.

Yale paleontologist Nicholas Longrich, the lead author of a paper announcing the find in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, told me that the name arose from a conversation he had with a friend in late 2008, when folks were wondering how Obama's election would change the political scene.

"I said, yeah, we should name a dinosaur after him," Longrich said. "It was sort of a smart-ass comment."

But the idea stuck. After all, this is the guy who named a different fossil "Mojoceratops."

"It was catchy, and it seemed like a fun thing to do," he said.

There's a serious point behind the paper, of course: Longrich and his colleagues analyzed at fossils representing 30 different types of snakes and lizards, previously collected from locales in western North America ranging from New Mexico to Alberta. Nine of the species, including Obamadon, were previously unrecognized.

"Lizards and snakes rivaled the dinosaurs in terms of diversity, making it just as much an 'Age of Lizards' as an 'Age of Dinosaurs,'" Longrich said in a Yale news release.

Previous studies had suggested that some snake and lizard species went extinct, along with the dinosaurs and many types of mammals, birds, insects and plants. The extinction was presumably due to a catastrophic asteroid strike on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.

The new survey suggests that snakes and lizards were hit much harder than previously thought. Longrich and his colleagues estimate that up to 83 percent of all snake and lizard species were killed off. The bigger the creature, the more likely it was to become extinct: The researchers concluded that no species weighing more than a pound survived.

Obamadon was part of a group of creatures known as polyglyphanodonts, which accounted for up to 40 percent of the lizards living in North America before the extinction. Obama's namesake was identified on the basis of jaw fossils from Montana's Hell Creek Formation, with "tall, slender teeth with large central cusps separated from small accessory cusps by lingual grooves."

The lizard was less than a foot long and probably caught insects in its teeth, Longrich said.

The discovery of Obamadon just goes to show how new discoveries can come from old specimens ? including fossils that were?collected years ago, by paleontologists who were focusing dinosaurs or early mammals rather than snakes or lizards. "There hasn't been a heck of a lot of interest in these specimens," Longrich said. "Here we have all this data that's there, waiting to be studied."

Two of the newly recognized fossil species don't yet have scientific names, but when it comes time for the naming, rest assured that Longrich won't come up with anything too wild and crazy.

"We decided not to do the Hitlerosaurus," he said.

More about celebrity species:

In addition to Longrich, the authors of the paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "Mass Extinction of Lizards and Snakes at the Cretaceous-Paleogene Boundary," include Bhart-Anjan S. Bhullar and Jacques A. Gauthier. Longrich says the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary is a more recent term that applies to the mass extinction also known as the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary.

Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's?Facebook page, following?@b0yle on Twitter?and adding the?Cosmic Log page?to your Google+ presence. To keep up with Cosmic Log as well as NBCNews.com's other stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out?"The Case for Pluto,"?my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.

Source: http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/10/15823225-ancient-lizard-that-died-out-with-the-dinosaurs-named-after-obama?lite

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Monday, December 10, 2012

Challenger: Merkel isolating Germany in Europe

BERLIN (AP) ? Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-left challenger accused the German leader of isolating the country in Europe as he sought Sunday to kick-start his campaign for next year's elections, pledging to make social policy and promises of tougher financial regulation central issues.

Former Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck's Social Democrats rallied around him after a difficult start to his quest to unseat Merkel. About 93 percent of delegates at a special party convention endorsed the 65-year-old Steinbrueck, who ran unopposed, as her challenger in parliamentary elections expected in September.

Merkel's conservatives lead polls, helped by the chancellor's personal popularity ? itself bolstered by her hard-nosed approach to Europe's debt crisis. But the outcome remains far from certain, with surveys showing a majority neither for her center-right coalition nor for Steinbrueck's hoped-for alliance with the Green party.

The center-left parties have criticized Merkel for what they decry as a too-little, too-late response to the eurozone's debt crisis, but have supported her rescue plans in parliament. They have argued more needs to be done to foster economic growth, and lack her aversion to any kind of pooling of European countries' debt.

"We must show the flag and go into this election with a clear pro-European position ? not fearing the resentments that exist, not fearing the position of some that 'we don't want to pay for other countries,'" Steinbrueck said in a televised speech to the party convention in Hannover.

"In the eyes of our neighbors, we are acting in a pretty schoolmasterly way at the moment ? a good neighbor doesn't do that," he said. "My main accusation is that Mrs. Merkel has (led) Germany into isolation in Europe."

Steinbrueck didn't go into details of European policy in a speech that hammered home his party's center-left credentials. He declared it will make the election "a face-off about social policy," with promises of a mandatory minimum wage and a quota for women in management positions, among other things.

Steinbrueck has called for big European banks to build up a rescue fund of their own rather than relying on taxpayer-funded aid. He pledged "instead of capitulation in the face of financial markets' potential for blackmail, more rigid regulation and supervision of financial markets."

Taxes for top earners need to rise to finance spending on education, infrastructure and Germany's transition from nuclear to renewable energy, he said, while stressing that keeping down debt is essential.

Party leaders nominated Steinbrueck in September. His start was marred by criticism of his high earnings for lectures ? about ?1.25 million ($1.6 million) for speaking to audiences including financial institutions ? that he gave after leaving government in 2009.

"My speaking fees were stones that I have in my luggage and unfortunately put on your shoulders too," Steinbrueck said, thanking his party for "carrying and bearing this burden with me."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/challenger-merkel-isolating-germany-europe-142451695.html

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Genius Gifts For Kids Who Love Science

If your kid starts showing an aptitude towards science and education, it's probably a good thing to encourage. This young person could advance humanity, and potentially land a full college scholarship in the process. Here are some of the best ways to begin to develop that natural curiosity into a lovely Nobel Prize. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/0aMO4rJPLuE/genius-gifts-for-kids-who-love-science

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