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PubMed1976

The impact of certificate-of need controls on hospital investment.

Certificate-of-Need (CON) controls over hospital investment have been enacted by a number of states in recent years and the National Health Planning and Resources Development Act of 1974 provides strong incentives for adoption of CON in additional states. In this study, we review the questions that have been raised about the effectiveness of CON controls and then we develop quantitative estimates of the impact of CON on investment. These estimates show that CON did not reduce the total dollar volume of investment but altered its composition, retarding expansion in bed supplies but increasing investment in new services and equipment. We suggest that this finding may be due to (1) the emphasis in CON laws and programs on controlling bed supplies and (2) a substitution of new services and equipment for additional beds in response to financial factors and organizational pressures for expansion. Finally, we caution against the conslusion that CON controls should be broadened and tightened, though our results might be so interpreted, because of the practical difficulties involved in reviewing and certifying large numbers of small investment projects.

Economics, Hospital↗
PubMed2002

[Experimental study of the effect on marginal seating of the castings by different investing methods].

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to observe the effect on marginal seating of the castings with and without ring investments. METHODS: Standarded as-cast specimens and round capsules simulated post tooth crowns were made. 12 wax pattern were prepared on the as-cast specimens. The 12 specimens were divided into two groups with 6 wax pattern in each group. Two different investing methods with the same investing material were tested. The marginal seating of the castings was measured under travelling microscope. RESULTS: The marginal seating of the casting without ring investment had significant difference compared with the castings with ring investment (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Casting without ring can improve the marginal seating of the castings.

English Abstract↗
PubMed1993

The expansion of phosphate bonded investments: Part I--Setting expansion.

Less expensive silver and palladium (AgPd) dental casting alloys are popular, but require phosphate bonded investments. The physical properties of such materials have not been thoroughly investigated. This study determined whether three different phosphate bonded investments could provide adequate expansion to compensate for the casting shrinkage of AgPd. The investments were mixed with distilled water or their unique special liquids provided by the manufacturers and allowed setting times of 1 hour or 24 hours. Setting expansions were measured with a vertical dilatometer. When mixed with special liquid, material I had a mean setting (1 hour) expansion of 0.19% +/- 0.01%; material II, 0.14% +/- 0.03%; and material III, 1.17% +/- 0.08%. Twenty-four hours of setting did not significantly increase the setting expansion (p > 0.05). Mixing the three investments with distilled water drastically reduced setting expansions. A three-way analysis of variance was computed to evaluate the data and investigate significant interactive and main effects. The two-way interaction (material x liquid) was significant. The results were consistent with the concept of a higher silica-containing special liquid for material III compared with the other materials.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2006

A basic guide to investing.

Today's investors have many choices. From seemingly simple investments, such as stocks, bonds and cash, to more complicated option strategies, there is a dizzying array of investment vehicles that can leave even the most seasoned investor a bit confused. In discussions with our clients, one common thread is the desire to learn more about the various types of investments available. Following is a basic guide to the most common investments and the risks inherent in those choices.

Financing, Personal↗
PubMed2002

Titanium casting into phosphate bonded investment with zirconite.

OBJECTIVE: Reaction layer structure of the titanium castings surface was investigated when a new centrifuge-vacuum-pressure cast titanium machine and a zirconite inner investment was used. METHODS: The micro-hardness of titanium castings was measured using a Knoop's hardness tester. The structure of reaction layers and the distribution of elements on the surfaces of titanium castings were analysed by SEM and EDS, respectively, when zirconite was used as the inner investment for cast titanium. RESULTS: Knoop's micro-hardness at distances of 50 and 75 microm from the titanium casting surfaces made directly in phosphate investment molds had significantly harder surfaces than those made in zirconite coating molds. The thickness of the reaction layer on the surface of titanium castings was <35 microm with zirconite coating and was >50 microm without zirconite coating. The structure of reaction layer was divided into four layers from the outer surface to the inner including: sintering layer, alpha-Case, Si-rich layer, acicular crystal structure. The distribution of elements was different on each layer. SIGNIFICANCE: The thickness of the cast titanium reaction layer was reduced when the wax patterns were coated with zirconite. The surface of the titanium castings was smooth and without cracks, and the investment on the surface of titanium castings was easily removed.

Dental Casting Investment↗
PubMed2004

The longitudinal accuracy of fit of titanium implant superstructures superplastically formed on investment models.

OBJECTIVES: To measure the effect of three special liquid proportions and five forming temperatures on the length of superplastically formed titanium dental implant superstructures made using Rematitan dental casting investment. METHODS: Rematitan dental casting investment was used to make models that contained two implant abutment analogues 8 mm apart. The investment was hand-mixed with 30, 50 or 70% special liquid proportions and ten models of each were made. Dies for superplastic forming (SPF) were made that contained three models (one for each special liquid proportion). Five dies were made for forming at 810 degrees C and five dies for forming at 810, 840, 873, 900 and 927 degrees C using 2 mm thick Ti-6Al-4V discs. The distance between the abutment impressions in the formed discs was measured with a traveling microscope and compared with the distance between the abutments of the master model to determine the most accurately fitting superstructure beam. RESULTS: The proportion of special liquid used to make the SPF models had an unpredictable effect on the length of the superstructure at each forming temperature. Superstructure beams formed at lower temperatures had a better fit compared to the master model for all special liquid proportions. The most accurately sized beams were formed at 810 degrees C. SIGNIFICANCE: SPF can provide an alternative method for the production of dental implant superstructures. The fit was affected predominantly by the forming temperature, but also by the special liquid proportion used for making the SPF investment model.

Alloys↗
PubMed2002

Investment appraisal using quantitative risk analysis.

Investment appraisal concerned with investments in fire safety systems is discussed. Particular attention is directed at evaluating, in terms of the Bayesian decision theory, the risk reduction that investment in a fire safety system involves. It is shown how the monetary value of the change from a building design without any specific fire protection system to one including such a system can be estimated by use of quantitative risk analysis, the results of which are expressed in terms of a Risk-adjusted net present value. This represents the intrinsic monetary value of investing in the fire safety system. The method suggested is exemplified by a case study performed in an Avesta Sheffield factory.

Accident Prevention↗
PubMed2002

Reasons to invest in adolescents.

PURPOSE: To discuss the frequent failure of the United States (and other countries) to make the types of investment in youth that would increase the future prospects of youth from high-risk backgrounds. I argue that these investments are worth making, and describe the types of research and knowledge dissemination that will be necessary to promote such investments. APPROACH: I begin with a framework for thinking about and working with adolescents. I review theories of youth development, the developmental tasks of adolescence, risk and resilience, and the strong tendency of current approaches to address single problems and symptoms rather than underlying conditions. A conceptual framework is presented that combines known elements of risk and protective factors, such as antecedents, system markers of current or potential difficulties, risk behaviors, and outcomes. I briefly review what we know about youth risk behavior and outcomes in various domains, including combined prevalence and patterning. I then examine what we know about the payoffs that we can expect from investing in activities that promote adolescent health. I end with a set of recommendations for researchers and practitioners, and discuss the information that they need to put these recommendations into practice.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Did the London Initiative Zone investment programme affect general practice structure and performance in East London? A time series analysis of cervical screening coverage and asthma prescribing.

A programme of incentives was set up in the London Initiative Zones to improve primary care in inner London based on the findings of the Tomlinson Enquiry in 1992. This descriptive study is a 4-y time series analysis of changes in general practice structure in East London as the result of London Initiative Zone investment, and an exploration of the possible effect of investment on practice performance. We used routinely available administrative data for the whole analysis. General practice characteristics and two selected performance indicators: the asthma prophylaxis to bronchodilator ratio and cervical cytology screening rate, for all practices in the East London and the City Health Authority for 4 y, 1993-1996, were used. Both reflect practice efficiency, but relate to different aspects of practice performance. The prescribing indicator is more indicative of the quality of clinical practise, whereas cervical screening coverage relates more to the characteristics of the practice population and to practice organisation. Repeated measures analyses were used to identify trends and to explore the relationship between changes in practice characteristics and performance. Graphical methods were used to compare East London trends with the rest of England. There were significant improvements in practice structure as the consequence of London Initiative Zone investment. There was a positive association with improvements in practice performance, but East London still lagged some way behind national patterns. The findings suggest that while improvements in asthma prescribing follow the national trend, practices have difficulty in achieving and sustaining the 80% target for cervical cytology screening, and that an overall population coverage of 80% may be in doubt.Increased investment in practice staffing may be influential in improving some aspects of performance. However, in common with other inner cities, a greater effort and more innovative strategies may be needed to achieve a standard of performance equal to the best.

Anti-Asthmatic Agents↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Use of a faculty investment model to attain the goals of a college of nursing.

Driven by demands for fiscal prudence, new services, and an orderly transition as aging faculty approach retirement, a new model for administrative planning and decision making was tested. In its first year of using an investment model, a private, 600+ student, College of Nursing was able to achieve a labor savings of 10 percent, an enhancement of revenue of 3 percent, and a human capital pool equal to 12 percent of total full-time faculty equivalents. The model, which includes the integration of strategic planning, benchmarking, continuous quality improvement, and management by objectives, was accomplished by taking three investment steps. The steps included goal determination, market understanding, and resource allocation. Investment activity distribution and work determination frameworks were developed as a result of the commitment to the investment process. Suggestions for the future include the need to continue to reorient administrative and faculty thinking as definitions of the educational enterprise evolve.

Chicago↗
PubMed2005

Investment behavior and the negative side of emotion.

Can dysfunction in neural systems subserving emotion lead, under certain circumstances, to more advantageous decisions? To answer this question, we investigated how normal participants, patients with stable focal lesions in brain regions related to emotion (target patients), and patients with stable focal lesions in brain regions unrelated to emotion (control patients) made 20 rounds of investment decisions. Target patients made more advantageous decisions and ultimately earned more money from their investments than the normal participants and control patients. When normal participants and control patients either won or lost money on an investment round, they adopted a conservative strategy and became more reluctant to invest on the subsequent round; these results suggest that they were more affected than target patients by the outcomes of decisions made in the previous rounds.

Affect↗
PubMed1995

Thermal behaviour of casting investment during setting.

The aim of this study was to examine the thermal reactions of silica-sol liquids for mixing investment powders using differential thermal analysis (DTA) and also the setting behaviour of the mixed powders using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The silica-sol liquids showed the appearance of vapourization (around 100 degrees C as a peak temperature) and combustion (200-300 degrees C) in DTA measurement. Mixed silica-sol investment exhibited the setting behaviour with an exotherm in the DSC measurement representing that greater peak time, setting time and heat in mixed investment than with gypsum-bonded investment.

1-Propanol↗
PubMed2006

What affects the quality of economic analysis for life-saving investments?

Economic analysis of life-saving investments in both the public and private sectors has the potential to dramatically improve longevity and the quality of life, but only if the analyses on which decisions are based are done well. In this article, we analyze a data set that provides information on the content and quality of journal articles that measure the cost-effectiveness of life-saving investments. Our study is the first to provide a detailed multivariate analysis of factors affecting objective measures of quality. We also explore whether a series of recommendations by an expert panel convened by the U.S. Public Health Service affect the way analyses of specific life-saving investments are done. Our results suggest that four factors are positively correlated with an index we construct to measure analytical quality: (1) having at least one author affiliated with a university, (2) publication in a journal that has experience in publishing these analyses, (3) if the life-saving investment is located in the United States, and (4) if the analysis considers a measure of social costs or benefits. Somewhat surprisingly, a study's funding source and whether it is affiliated with industry are not significantly correlated with the quality index. Finally, neither time nor the panel guidelines had an impact on the index.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed1975

The effects of additives on the thermal behaviour of gypsum-bonded casting investments. Part I.

In the formulation of gypsum-bonded casting investments, small amounts of certain modifiers are sometimes added to increase the investment's thermal expansion. In the present investigation, a systematic study has been made of the effects on thermal expansion of adding boric acid and sodium chloride to the investment powder, and glycerol to the mixing water. The combination of 0.2 per cent of sodium chloride in the powder, and 10 per cent of glycerol in the mixing water, appears to offer most promise in the formulation of an investment with a high thermal expansion.

Boric Acids↗
PubMed1993

Study of gypsum-bonded casting investments. Part 2.

The simultaneous differential thermal analysis--thermogravimetry (DTA-TG) method used in Part 1 of this two-part study was extended to analyse two gypsum-bonded dental casting investments, Kerr Cristobalite Inlay and GC Cristobalite Micro. Both investments had a similar cristobalite content of about 70 per cent. The remaining 30 per cent was dental stone in GCM, and a mixture of plaster and dental stone in KCl. Inclusion of plaster in KCl appeared responsible for the greater amount of water required for mixing this investment. The DTA-TG method used in the present study can be applied to identify the type and amount of hemihydrate, and the type of silica, in currently available gypsum-bonded investments.

Calcium Sulfate↗
PubMed1988

The effect of casting ring liners on the potential expansion of a gypsum-bonded investment.

Cellulose paper (used wet) and ceramic paper (used dry) are replacing asbestos paper as cushioning ring liners in dental casting. A study was made of the effects of all three of these materials on the setting and subsequent thermal expansion of a gypsum-bonded cristobalite casting investment (W/P = 0.40). Thermal expansion measurements were made on the same specimens that were produced during the setting expansion tests. Control specimens setting against a smooth dry surface showed a total expansion of 1.7%. Specimens setting against dry ceramic liners had similar total expansions, in the range 1.6 to 1.7%. Specimens setting against either of the wet lining materials showed an increased total expansion (in the range 2.2 to 2.3%), by virtue mainly of a large increase in setting expansion. In order for reproducible setting expansion results to be obtained with wet liners, it was necessary to control the amount of absorbed water carefully. Dry asbestos and dry cellulose liners gave higher expansions than pre-wetted ones, since they abstracted water from the mix, reducing its effective W/P ratio (giving a thicker mix), and then functioned as wet liners. These results suggest that, at least as far as potential investment expansion is concerned, wet cellulose liners have an effect similar to that of the traditional wet asbestos liners. Dry ceramic liners give a much lower investment expansion, and when these liners are used, an investment with an increased measured expansion could be an advantage.

Asbestos↗
PubMed1990

Casting pure titanium into commercial phosphate-bonded SiO2 investment molds.

Pure titanium was cast into five different phosphate-bonded SiO2 investment mold materials (at 350 degrees C) with an argon-arc melting and pressure casting machine. The mesh castability, the fit of the MOD inlay castings, and the Knoop hardness and the micro-structure in cross-sections of castings were examined. The setting and thermal expansion, the compressive strength, and the X-ray diffraction analysis of the investments were also measured. The castability, the fit, and the thickness of the reacted layer differed in degree among these investments, in spite of the same phosphate-bonded SiO2-type investment. A significant correlation was obtained between the thermal expansion (at 350 degrees C) and the casting accuracy.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1986

Population stabilization and national spatial policy of public investment: the Japanese experience.

"This paper presents a new method that can be used to reveal the policy objectives with which actual public investment decisions are consistent. Japanese regional investment expenditures from 1958 to 1978 are analyzed, and the dominant policies in effect during this period are identified using this method. A connection between Japanese regional public investment policies and the convergence of population growth across regions is suggested." The suitability of redistributive investment policies as a mechanism for the spatial stabilization of other populations experiencing rapid economic growth is noted.

Asia↗