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PubMed2002

Case studies of violations of workers' freedom of association: migrant agricultural workers.

As part of its report "Unfair Advantage: Workers' Freedom of Association in the United States under International Human Rights Standards," Human Rights Watch conducted a series of case studies in a dozen states, covering a variety of industries and employment sectors, analyzing the U.S. experience in the light of both national law and international human rights and labor rights norms. Presented here are the case studies of migrant agricultural workers.

Agriculture↗
PubMed2002

Request solicitation and semantic evocation of freedom: an evaluation in a computer-mediated communication context.

The "But you are free of..." technique is a compliance procedure which solicits someone to comply with a request by simply telling him that he is free to accept or to refuse the request. This semantic evocation leads to increased compliance with the request. A new evaluation of the generality of this technique was tested in an experiment in which subjects received an anonymous electronic mail which asked them to consult the site of a humanitarian association for children. Analysis showed that, when the semantic evocation of freedom is included in the message, a higher compliance rate was observed than in a situation in which this evocation was omitted.

Advertising↗
PubMed2003

Do "any willing provider" and "freedom of choice" laws affect HMO market share?

This study examines the effects of "any willing provider" (AWP) and "freedom of choice" (FOC) laws on the market share of health maintenance organizations (HMOs) in metropolitan statistical areas over the period 1989-95. We use pooled cross-section time-series regression techniques with year and state fixed effects. HMO market share is hypothesized to be a function of state laws, market characteristics, and state preference for managed care regulation. AWP and FOC laws are characterized by three alternative measures of regulatory intensity. The results suggest that FOC laws have a greater impact on market share than do AWP laws. More comprehensive regulation has a bigger impact than less encompassing laws, and laws limiting selective contracting with physicians are more effective in reducing HMO market share than are laws covering hospitals or pharmacies.

Contract Services↗
PubMed1999

[What degree of freedom is there for living donors?].

The shortage of cadaveric donors has induced a renewed interest in living kidney donation. This paper describes the legal, religious and ethical factors which ensure or restrict the autonomy of the potential donor. We conclude that it is possible with appropriate measures to protect his freedom of choice.

Belgium↗
PubMed1999

[Marijuana, health, disease, and freedom: analysis of an Internet forum].

This paper takes a Health Education perspective to analyze a debate forum on the Brazilian Internet site entitled "Universo On-Line", in which the following questions were addressed: "Do you believe that marijuana is harmful to one's health?" "In your opinion, should marijuana use be decriminalized?" By applying qualitative discourse analysis techniques to responses from the forum, we were able to identify six main types of discourse, reflecting the opinions of six "collective subjects" concerning drugs, health, disease, and freedom and existing as social representations in the current Brazilian collective imagination. Research on these social representations allows one to establish criteria for intervention in the field of Health Education.

Alcoholism↗
PubMed2000

[Three arguments for scientific freedom].

The principle of scientific freedom usually is taken for granted; few attempts have been made to justify it systematically. The present paper discusses three "classic" arguments, which are used to justify this principle. It will become clear (a) that each argument refers to a different understanding of science and, therefore, justifies a different type of science; (b) that each of them involves presuppositions which do not always match the social reality of scientific research; the profound changes science has undergone since its inception are not sufficiently taken into account.

Freedom↗
PubMed1991

[For or against human freedom? 3 authors, 2 theses and a behavior].

Three answers to the paradox of a free mind in a determinist universe. For Amselek the paradox does not exist for the determinism is not objective but construction of human brain. Laplane think we have to replace the axioms with others compatible at once with the macrophysical determinism and the free will and postulates a reality with three faces: matter, energy mind. Laborit denies also the paradox but the three behave in every day life as free answerable people. Freedom does not exist, its appearance is the result of the multiplicity of the determinisms.

Artificial Intelligence↗
PubMed1977

[Professional freedom and Act 101 of 1965].

Act 101 of 1965 replaced Act 13 of 1928 because the latter had become obsolete. Act 101 makes many new demands on and restricts certain privileges of the medical profession. New ideas, particularly if they restrict previous privileges, are resented. Also, new ideas do not necessarily denote progress. I am of the opinion that these curtailments are detrimental to public benefit. However, to provide positive suggestions to ease the situation is extremely difficult. All those concerned with public welfare should once again review public requirements. Ultimately, Act 101 prescribes for the whole population--is it then unreasonable to curtail medical professional freedom? Under the present circumstances this does not seem to be the case. However, sections of the Act may hamper doctors in the performance of their duties.

Ethics, Medical↗
PubMed1983

[The search for meaning--the subject and freedom, a psychoanalytic contribution].

Behaviour or symptoms of neurotic nature are characterized as actions provided we succeed in uncovering their "secret motives" by construction or reconstruction. I. e. we may say insofar we succeed in describing the "whither", the "what for" (S. Freud), to which necessarily belongs "from where" (s. Freud, 1916/17, p. 284, 277) we find sense in nonsense. We also say, that sense already was in existence insofar defense mechanisms were operating preventing its overt expression. But we say sense and rationality have been constituted insofar something, which has never been translated into conscienceness, was raised to the level of language. Both processes take place during the psycho-analytic situation. The following preconditions are apparently necessary for their realization: a) the experience of the acknowledgement of a basic drive-wish by the therapist. This event has the character of evidential nature and as to this is in itself preverbal. Nevertheless we need a verbal phrasing of the corresponding interaction and the accompanying emotion in order that both may be included into the executive power of the ego, i.e. the subject. The strict obedience to the rules of a setting which bind both, patient and therapist at the same time. Because of this a firm basis exists which cannot be doubted. It forms the common background object (J. Grotstein) by which and through which both partners of the dialogue may be "at-one" with one another and to which they may also return insofar further developmental events of their interactional process produce alienations and is pushing them to turn to different external objects. Insofar processes as just alluded to take place, the subject is predicated in a play of argumentated reasoning. And if secret motives and hidden reasons concerning the presented modality of the subject's actions are understood, the subject itself realizes, that it has its origin not in its products but in a negation, in a "zero" position which in itself is a equivalent of freedom. In order that interpretative work in the service of the aims just mentioned may become possible, there are some other preconditions to be fulfilled by the therapist: a) the attitude of "evenly hovering attention" (S. Freud) because it is this attitude which makes the therapist receptive for emotional cathexis, originating in the patient's unconscious.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Freedom↗
PubMed1997

Complete atrioventricular septal defects: results of repair, risk factors, and freedom from reoperation.

BACKGROUND: Several perioperative risk factors influence outcomes after repair of complete atrioventricular septal defects. This study was conducted to determine their association with perioperative mortality and need for reoperation. METHOD AND RESULTS: Between July 1982 and February 1995, 363 children underwent defect repair (median age, 8.3 months; mean, 17.4+/-1.3). Tetralogy of Fallot was present in 21 patients, double-outlet right ventricle in 4, subaortic stenosis in 8, ventricular hypoplasia in 8, coarctation in 5, atrial isomerism in 2, and other congenital anomalies in 9. Down's syndrome was present in 235 (65%). One-patch technique was applied in 99, two-patch in 243. During repair, the anterior bridging leaflet was divided in 12, the posterior bridging leaflet in 31, both leaflets in 71, and neither in 249. Left atrioventricular valve (LAVV) cleft was closed partially in 181 and completely in 112. Early mortality was 10.5%; 10-year survival, 83% (95% confidence interval, 0.79 to 0.87). At 10 years, freedom from reoperation for LAVV repair was 86%; LAVV replacement, 90%; subaortic stenosis, 95%; residual ventricular septal defect, 97%; permanent pacemaker insertion, 98%; and other types of reoperation, 95%. At the time of operation, greater age, shorter ischemic time, absence of a double-orifice LAVV, and cleft closure were found to be significant independent predictors of survival. CONCLUSIONS: Repair of atrioventricular septal defects has acceptable early and late mortality and a low incidence of reoperation. Double-orifice LAVV remains a risk factor. Repairs that include complete cleft closure may confer better survival.

Follow-Up Studies↗
PubMed1998

[What carries more weight, safety or freedom? Contact persons on physical restraint of psychogeriatric nursing home patients].

All representatives of psychogeriatric patients of two Dutch nursing homes (in Nijmegen and Amsterdam) were asked for their opinion about the use of (physical) restraints. Questions referred to characteristics of the respondents and their relatives in the nursing home, information provided by the nursing home, and decision-making. Furthermore respondents' opinion was studied by means of statements on six patient cases for whom respondents could choose the application of any type of restraint or no restraint. 77% (321) of all 416 representatives who were sent a questionnaire responded. The majority (75%) was well informed on the existence of several types of physical restraints, one third of the respondents, however, answered that information provided by the nursing home in this respect was lacking. 55% of the respondents answered that there was only a need for information on physical restraint when a problem concerning their family member actually occurs. Almost 90% of the respondents wanted to play an active role in decision-making or at least be informed before or shortly after application of a restraint. From the answers on the statements a majority of the respondents may be concluded to choose for safety above freedom for their relatives. Belts tied to a chair or bed, but also chairs with tables across, were judged to be the most restraining and influential on the mood of the relatives. The answers regarding the six patient cases show that a majority of the respondents choose any type of restraint. In most cases they choose for less restraining devices and for devices with less or no influence on the mood. About one-third of the representatives of the Amsterdam nursing home answered that their relatives ever had had any application of a restraint, while in the Nijmegen nursing home this prevalence was twice as high. In many aspects Amsterdam respondents were more critical about the application of restraints. This could probably be explained by the difference in policy of restraint application between the two nursing homes.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Prediction of protein conformational freedom from distance constraints.

A method is presented that generates random protein structures that fulfil a set of upper and lower interatomic distance limits. These limits depend on distances measured in experimental structures and the strength of the interatomic interaction. Structural differences between generated structures are similar to those obtained from experiment and from MD simulation. Although detailed aspects of dynamical mechanisms are not covered and the extent of variations are only estimated in a relative sense, applications to an IgG-binding domain, an SH3 binding domain, HPr, calmodulin, and lysozyme are presented which illustrate the use of the method as a fast and simple way to predict structural variability in proteins. The method may be used to support the design of mutants, when structural fluctuations for a large number of mutants are to be screened. The results suggest that motional freedom in proteins is ruled largely by a set of simple geometric constraints.

Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy↗
PubMed1998

Preliminary experience with stent-supported coronary angioplasty in long narrowings using the long Freedom Force stent: acute and six-month clinical and angiographic results in a series of 27 consecutive patients.

This report describes our preliminary experience with coronary stent-supported angioplasty in long narrowings using a long stent with an innovative design. Twenty-seven consecutive patients with target lesions >20 mm in length had a stenting procedure using the Freedom Force long coronary stent (Global Therapeutics, Inc., Broomfield, CO). Target lesion length ranged from 20.7-57.5 mm (mean, 27.66+/-9.41 mm). A total of 35 stents was implanted with a mean stented length of 36.26+/-12.36 mm. The stenting procedure was successful in all patients. Single long stent implantation was performed in 19 patients, while 8 patients had double stent implantation. No major cardiac adverse events occurred during hospital stay. The restenosis rate at the 6-mo angiographic follow-up was 38% (follow-up rate, 96%). During follow-up, no major cardiac events such as death, myocardial infarction, or coronary artery surgery occurred, while 3 patients (11%), all with recurrent angina and angiographic restenosis, underwent repeat coronary angioplasty. Potential advantages of this innovative stent in long narrowings relate to its high flexibility in passing through long tortuous diseased segments, and in treating long lesions using only 1 or 2 stents.

Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary↗
PubMed1995

A simulation test of Smith's "Degrees of freedom" correction for comparative studies.

Computer simulation was used to test Smith's (1994) correction for phylogenetic nonindependence in comparative studies. Smith's method find effective N, which is computed using nested analysis of variance, and uses this value in place of observed N as the baseline degrees of freedom (df) for calculating statistical significance levels. If Smith's formula finds the correct df, distributions of computer-generated statistics from simulations with observed N nonindependent species should match theoretical distributions (from statistical tables) with the df based on effective N. The computer program developed to test Smith's method simulates character evolution down user-specified phylogenies. Parameters were systematically varied to discover their effects on Smith's method. In simulations in which the phylogeny and taxonomy were identical (tests of narrow-sense validity), Smith's method always gave conservative statistical results when the taxonomy had fewer than five levels. This conservative departure gave way to a liberal deviation in type I error rates in simulations using more than five taxonomic levels, except when species values were nearly independent. Reducing the number of taxonomic levels used in the analysis, and thereby eliminating available information regarding evolutionary relationships, also increased type I error rates (broad-sense validity), indicating that this may be inappropriate under conditions shown to have high type I error rates. However, the use of taxonomic categories over more accurate phylogenies did not create a liberal bias in all cases in the analysis performed here. The effect of correlated trait evolution was ambiguous but, relative to other parameters, negligible.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2001

A six-degree-of-freedom passive arm with dynamic constraints (PADyC) for cardiac surgery application: preliminary experiments.

The purpose of Computer-Assisted Surgery (CAS) is to help physicians and surgeons plan and execute optimal strategies from multimodal image data. The execution of such planned strategies may be assisted by guidance systems. Some of these systems, called synergistic systems, are based on the cooperation of a robotic device with a human operator. We have developed such a synergistic device: PADyC (Passive Arm with Dynamic Constraints). The basic principle of PADyC is to have a manually actuated arm that dynamically constrains the authorized motions of the surgical tool held by the human operator during a planned task. Dynamic constraints are computed from the task definition, and are implemented by a patented mechanical system. In this paper, we first introduce synergistic systems and then focus on modeling and algorithmic issues related to the dynamic constraints. Finally, we describe a 6-degree-of-freedom prototype robot designed for a clinical application (cardiac surgery) and report on preliminary experiments to date. The experimental results are then discussed, and future work is proposed.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2002

Long-term freedom from recurrence in 2 stage IV melanoma patients following vaccination with tyrosinase peptides.

We report here on 2 patients who received adjuvant vaccination with an HLA-A2- or HLA-A24-restricted tyrosinase peptide, respectively, and GM-CSF for frequently relapsing stage IV melanoma. Following resection of metastases and irradiation of brain metastases in 1 patient, both patients were without evidence of disease when receiving the first vaccination. While the patients had had 9 and 12, respectively, mostly s.c., relapses during the 3 years before vaccination, they experienced freedom from relapse for more than 2 years after vaccination. We found a T-cell response to the vaccine peptide in both patients in the peripheral blood by ex vivo IFN-gamma ELISPOT assay. The T-cell population could be further characterized by 4-color flow cytometry in 1 patient, showing that the majority of the peptide-specific CD3(+)CD8(+)IFN-gamma(+) T cells were granzyme B-positive and CCR-7-negative, characterizing them as effector T cells with the ability to mediate cytotoxicity and migrate to inflamed tissues. In this patient also, augmentation of the T-cell response to autologous tumor cells by vaccination could be detected. A single-site postvaccination relapse occurred in both patients, showing downregulation of tyrosinase expression in 1 patient, while normal expression levels for tyrosinase, MHC class I antigens and components of the antigen-processing machinery were found in the other patient. These results suggest that peptide vaccination resulted in a prolonged relapse-free interval in these high-risk patients.

Brain Neoplasms↗
PubMed1994

Space station freedom life sciences activities.

Life sciences activities being planned for Space Station Freedom (SSF) as of Fall 1992 are discussed. Planning for these activities is ongoing. Therefore, this description should be viewed as indicative of the prevailing ideas at one particular time in the SSF development cycle. The proposed contributions of the Canadian Space Agency (CSN) the European Space Agency (ESA), Japan, and the United States are all discussed in detail. In each case, the life sciences goals, and the way in which each partner proposes to achieve their goals, are reviewed.

Humans↗
PubMed2003

Evaluation of a meridian-based intervention, Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), for reducing specific phobias of small animals.

This study explored whether a meridian-based procedure, Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), can reduce specific phobias of small animals under laboratory-controlled conditions. Randomly assigned participants were treated individually for 30 min with EFT (n = 18) or a comparison condition, diaphragmatic breathing (DB) (n = 17). ANOVAS revealed that EFT produced significantly greater improvement than did DB behaviorally and on three self-report measures, but not on pulse rate. The greater improvement for EFT was maintained, and possibly enhanced, at six- to nine-months follow-up on the behavioral measure. These findings suggest that a single treatment session using EFT to reduce specific phobias can produce valid behavioral and subjective effects. Some limitations of the study also are noted and clarifying research suggested.

Adult↗