Plos One
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We examined the charges, their variability, and respective payer group for diagnosis and treatment of the ten most common outpatient conditions presenting to the Emergency department (ED). ⋯ Emergency department charges for common conditions are expensive with high charge variability. Greater acute care charge transparency will at least allow patients and providers to be aware of the emergency department charges patients may face in the current health care system.
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Faced with a massive shortfall in meeting sanitation targets, some governments have implemented campaigns that use subsidies focused on latrine construction to overcome income constraints and rapidly expand coverage. In settings like rural India where open defecation is common, this may result in sub-optimal compliance (use), thereby continuing to leave the population exposed to human excreta. ⋯ A large-scale campaign to implement sanitation has achieved substantial gains in latrine coverage in this population. Nevertheless, gaps in coverage and widespread continuation of open defecation will result in continued exposure to human excreta, reducing the potential for health gains.
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Tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) represent two of the greatest health threats in African prisons. In 2010, collaboration between the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, the Zambia Prisons Service, and the National TB Program established a TB and HIV screening program in six Zambian prisons. We report data on the prevalence of TB and HIV in one of the largest facilities: Lusaka Central Prison. ⋯ Ineffective TB and HIV screening programs deter successful disease control strategies in prison facilities and their surrounding communities. We found rates of TB and HIV in Lusaka Central Prison that are substantially higher than the Zambian average, with a trend towards concentration and potential transmission of both diseases within the facility and to the general population. Investment in institutional and criminal justice reform as well as prison-specific health systems is urgently required.
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Children with Down syndrome, the most common genetic cause of intellectual disability, are prone to multiple and varied health-related problems. This study describes patterns of hospitalisations for children and young people with Down syndrome in Western Australia. ⋯ Children with Down syndrome are at increased risk of morbidity for varied causes underlining the importance of comprehensive and targeted primary care for this group.
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The analysis of co-authorship network aims at exploring the impact of network structure on the outcome of scientific collaborations and research publications. However, little is known about what network properties are associated with authors who have increased number of joint publications and are being cited highly. ⋯ Authors' network positions in co-authorship networks influence the performance (i.e., citation count) and formation (i.e., tie strength) of scientific collaborations.