Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is a public health problem that affects women worldwide. Consequently, victims frequently go to healthcare centers, usually with a cover reason. To address this problem, national and autonomic protocols to respond to IPVAW in health systems have been developed in Spain. In this regard, the role of primary care physicians (PCPs) will be essential for addressing IPVAW, but they could encounter obstacles in doing so. The purpose of this study was to explore how IPVAW is addressed in healthcare centers in Spain. This study synthesized the information available in the protocols to address IPVAW among health care workers in Spain and analyzed it according to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Additionally, PCPs’ perspectives on these protocols and the nature of IPVAW attention from healthcare centers were explored through a focus group. The findings displayed that, although the protocols mostly conform to WHO guidelines, they are insufficient to address IPVAW. Generally, PCPs were unaware of the existence of the protocols and referred to the lack of training in IPVAW and protocol use as one of the main obstacles to intervening, along with a lack of time and feelings as well as cultural, educational, and political factors. The adoption of measures to ensure that PCPs apply these protocols correctly and to approach PCPs’ obstacles for addressing IPVAW in consultations will be crucial for the care of victims.

To ascertain the rational credences for the epistemic agents in the famous cases of self-locating belief, one should model the processes by which those agents acquire their evidence. This approach, taken by Darren Bradley (Phil. Review 121, 149–177) and Joseph Halpern (Ergo 2, 195–206), is immensely reasonable. Nevertheless, the work of those authors makes it seem as if this approach must lead to such conclusions as the Doomsday argument being correct, and that Sleeping Beauty should be a halfer. I argue that this is due to an implicit existential bias: it is assumed that the first step in those processes is the determination that the agent in question must necessarily exist. It is much more reasonable to model that determination as contingent and a result of other, earlier, steps in the process. This paper offers such alternative models. They imply an endorsement of what has mockingly been called “presumptuous” reasoning, and a massive shift of credences in favor of (1) the existence of a multiverse and (2) the Everettian interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Since the establishment of the first radiocarbon accelerator mass spectrometry facility in Latin America in 2009, the Radiocarbon Laboratory team of Universidade Federal Fluminense (LAC-UFF) has worked to improve sample preparation protocols and increase the range of environmental matrices to be analyzed. We now present the preliminary results for DIC sample preparation protocols. The first validation tests include background evaluation with pMC value (0.35 ± 0.04) using bicarbonate dissolved in water. We also analyzed surface seawater resulting in pMC value (101.38 ± 0.38) and a groundwater previously dated from LEMA AMS-Laboratory with pMC value (12.30 ± 0.15).

In recent years, the Schengen Area—and the suppression within its territory of border controls—has become a strong focus of attention. This article focuses on another region of Europe where such controls have been suppressed: the Common Travel Area (‘CTA’). Historically, both Ireland and the United Kingdom have rejected membership of the Schengen system—albeit securing certain ‘opt-in’ rights—and instead maintained the CTA between their respective jurisdictions. The CTA has, however, garnered relatively little public attention until recently, when concerns as to the implications of Brexit for the maintenance of an open border between Ireland and Northern Ireland have gained ground, and threatened to be a deal breaker in the negotiations under Article 50 TEU on UK exit from the EU (‘Brexit’). This article examines the background to the CTA, exploring its surprisingly fluid legal framework; its development in the legal systems of Ireland and the United Kingdom; and subsequently, how it was exempted from what is now EU law as the Schengen arrangements were integrated into the Union. The recent introduction of the British-Irish Visa Scheme, which formalises some visa rules regarding citizens of third states, and which tends in the direction of consolidating CTA arrangements, is also examined. The article further explores the challenges that confront the CTA in coping with the outcome of the June 2016 Brexit referendum, which should result in the UK leaving the European Union in March 2019, and the implications of Brexit for the CTA. Finally, it seeks to identify some key characteristics of the CTA in light of experience to date.

Systematic reviews answer specific review questions by following structured steps and employing specific methods to reduce the risk of bias and to maximize transparency in the process of the review, and systematic review methodology differs from traditional narrative reviews in many ways. As a journal devoted to reviews, it is appropriate that Animal Health Research Reviews (AHRR) includes this approach to reviews of the literature. The aim of this special issue of AHRR was to illustrate the scope of articles that can be considered for submission to the systematic review section of this journal for prospective authors and readers.

The definitive discovery of another form of life from beyond Earth will answer one of our most fundamental questions: Are we alone in the Universe? This announcement will be the most significant in history. It will have impact on every facet of our lives and affect everyone on Earth. Ensuring the announcement is handled properly represents an opportunity to unify government, industrial, and scientific resources to work together on a global scale issue. The purpose of the present paper is to understand whether we have the overall strategy, management structures and process disciplines in place on a global scale to handle an announcement of this magnitude. The research methodology included review and analysis of peer-reviewed work on the topic, publications from appropriate scientific and policy organizations, and public statements from several acknowledged experts in the field of astrobiology and extraterrestrial communications. The 1996 case of the announcement of possible life from Martian meteorite ALH84001 was also analysed. The findings of the paper are multiple deficiencies exist in the ability to manage this problem globally in an integrated fashion across borders, institutional boundaries, and through the media. High-level recommendations are offered to address major identified gaps.

This paper describes the development of protocols with interpreters employed in an East London psychological trauma clinic. The service treats traumatized refugee people with cognitive methods, according to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) Guidelines for PTSD. NICE states that language should not be a barrier to treatment, but provides no further guidance to achieve this. These protocols for interpreting CBT are designed to be explicit, consistent and ethical. A telephone poll from a recent UK-wide trauma survey, a focus group with local interpreters, and practitioner reflection were all used to develop and refine the protocols and their rationale, which are described, together with implications for future culturally sensitive practice and research.

Purpose: Radiation techniques employed for breast cancer must be efficient as well as effective in order to minimise waiting lists. Protocol restrictions, or the technical application of treatment, may influence planning and treatment times as radiographers follow departmental policies. A national survey of UK radiotherapy centres was undertaken to establish trends in waiting times for breast cancer irradiation; and to investigate relationships of waiting times with the deployment of equipment and personnel and technical procedures adopted.

Method: A questionnaire was posted to the Head of Radiotherapy Services and a Clinical Oncologist with an interest in breast cancer in the radiotherapy centres in the UK. Survey questions investigated a number of issues, including the number of breast patients planned per week; protocols chosen; average treatment and planning times; levels of personnel and equipment; and the population served.

Results: A total of 53 centres were contacted, of which 51 centres responded to some aspect of the survey (96%). Average waiting times for treatment fluctuated from 1 to 7 weeks and maximum waiting times of 11 weeks were reported. Variation in clinical practice was found, including procedure times and the number of radiographers employed per linear accelerator. A multiple regression analysis indicated that a combination of equipment levels, simulation times, and the number of breast contours taken best predicted the average waiting time for breast treatment.

Conclusion: Waiting times reported were influenced by a combination of levels of equipment available and protocols adopted.

Interest in the role of the nurse practitioner in primary care, as first point of contact for patients with acute illnesses, is well established. Recent studies in the UK have examined the role in the context of a variety of acute presentations and have addressed issues of competence, safety and patient satisfaction. The management of acute presentations involves responsibility for making a diagnosis and, frequently, for recommending medication either on prescription or to be purchased from the pharmacy. As the nurse practitioner role develops in primary care there is a need for evidence of the effective management of specific acute presentations. Protocols have been advocated as a key to the successful introduction of the nurse practitioner role but the legality of their use, particularly in relation to prescribing, remains unclear. The aim of this study was to compare, in one general practice, the management of acute urinary symptoms by nurse practitioners with that of GPs in the context of a protocol. The study was undertaken in two parts: a retrospective analysis of a sample of the records of female patients followed by a patient satisfaction survey. The retrospective analysis examined the use of the protocol in guiding the decision-making of both groups of practitioners and evaluated the outcome for the patient. The outcome indicator used in this part of the study was the need for a repeat consultation within 14 days due to non-resolution of symptoms. The retrospective analysis of records was supplemented by a patient satisfaction survey. In comparison with the GPs, the nurse practitioners' records were more complete, the prescribing rate was lower, the use of laboratory resources was similar and there was no difference in the number of patients who needed to be seen again. In the patient satisfaction study higher levels of patient satisfaction were achieved by the nurse practitioners.

Rapid epidemiological assessment (REA) has evolved over the past 30 years into an essential tool of disaster management. Small area survey and sampling methods are the major application. While REA is protocol driven, needs assessment of displaced populations remains highly non-standardized. The United Nations and other international organizations continue to call for the development of standardized instruments for post-disaster needs assessment.

This study examines REA protocols from leading agencies in humanitarian health assistance across an evaluation criteria of best-practice attributes. Analysis of inconsistencies and deficits leads to the derivation of a Minimum Essential Data Set (MEDS) proposed for use by relief agencies in post-disaster REA of health status in displaced populations. This data set lends itself to initial assessment, ongoing monitoring, and evaluation of relief efforts. It is expected that the task of rapid epidemiological assessment, and more generally, the professional practice of post-disaster health coordination, will be enhanced by development, acceptance, and use of standardized Minimum Essential Data Sets (MEDS).