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The general medical services (GMS) scheme provides care free at the point of use for the 30% most economically deprived section of the population and the elderly. Almost all people of over-70-year olds are eligible for the GMS scheme potentially directing resources away from those most in need. The aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between practice GMS income and deprivation amongst Dublin-based general practitioners (GPs). The practice GMS income in Dublin was analysed in relation to practice characteristics including the number of GPs, catchment area population, proportion of over-70-year olds in the catchment area, catchment deprivation, number of GMS GPs within 2 km, and average GMS practice income within 2 km. Practice GMS income was highest in deprived areas but is also a valuable source of income in the least deprived areas. The capitation rate for over-70-year olds provides an incentive for GPs to locate in affluent areas and potentially directs resources away from those in greater need.

This paper demonstrates that by understanding how energy is consumed in the manufacturing of reinforced concrete, designers can significantly reduce the overall embodied energy of structures. Embodied energy of products can vary from country to country. Therefore, to accurately estimate the embodied energy of reinforced concrete structures, data specific to the country where they are being constructed must be used. This paper presents the assessment of embodied energy in typical RC building structures in Ireland.The most common methods used to calculate EE are evaluated in this paper and the most suitable method was applied to reinforced concrete. The EE of a typical 30 MPa concrete mix in Ireland is calculated to be 1.08 MJ/kg. Notably cement is credited with 68% of the total EE. The major contributors of energy consumption are identified, which should aid to minimise energy consumption and optimise efficiency.A case study is presented which compares the EE of a typical reinforced concrete structure in Ireland using two concrete mix designs. The first uses Ordinary Portland Cement, while the second uses GGBS replacing half of the cement content. As expected, the EE of the GGBS mix is significantly lower (30%) than that of its counterpart. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. peer-reviewed

Objectives: Most Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries have introduced cost-sharing. This study compares the views of patients who are used to a service that is free at the point of delivery with those who are used to a system where 70% of patients pay for consultations. Methods: Secondary analysis of survey data from a random sample of 11,870 patients in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Results: A 52% response rate was achieved, though respondents were representative of the two populations. Attitudes generally reflected the national status quo with little support for co-payments where there was currently no charging, but broad support where charging was established. Charging for missed appointments would be supported where there were delays in getting an appointment. Conclusions: More research is needed to understand what underlies support for, or opposition to, charges. However, it is apparent that patients' opinions need to be considered when formulating health care policy.

Background Research and policy related to reducing health inequalities has progressed separately within Ireland and Northern Ireland. This paper describes the first exploration of the socio-economic influences on health on the island of Ireland since 1922. Methods Postal survey. Results The response rate was 52%; 11,870 respondents. Men reported more long-standing illness (LLTI) or poor general health (PGH); depression was more common amongst women. Socio-economic gradients in health were evident in both jurisdictions, with the effects of household income being particularly marked. Overall, morbidity levels were significantly better in Ireland than in Northern Ireland: adjusted odds ratio Of 0.79 (95% Cl 0.71- 0.88) for LLTI; 0.64 (0.57 - 0.72) for PGH; 0.90 (0.82 - 0.99) for depression. Conclusions There is evidence of strong and similar socio-economic gradients in health throughout the island of Ireland. This would suggest joint policy approaches or at least further comparative evaluation of the initiatives in each jurisdiction.

Ecological studies are increasingly being used to monitor changes in status over time or as a way of evaluating area based policy interventions1 and as a method of examining for widening inequalities in health.2 The principle is to apply the same assessment instruments to the same areas at two points in time and to compare the changes. However, most of these studies ignore the possible contribution of population change.3This paper aims to compare the inter-censal changes in the mortality experience of the two capital cities in the North and South of Ireland with the rest of the country to see if these changes are related to population movement. Each country was divided into three areas; capital city, hinterland and the rest of the country. For the South of Ireland the first two of these were respectively Dublin City Borough (which is nested within Dublin County) and the remainder of Dublin County. The equivalent divisions for Northern Ireland were Belfast City (defined by the Belfast …

International audience; This chapter presents the main food characteristics impacted by both the nature and the content of mineral ions through a few selected examples. It provides on the involvement of mineral ions on taste perception of different food systems, on the colour of foods, and on the texture and structure of foods. The chapter focuses on the taste influence of minerals in model dairy products. Meat is recognized as an important source of protein in the human diet, but it also provides a large variety of minerals, which are involved in many physiological functions and are thus essential for good health. Along with aroma, taste and texture perception, colour is one of the key factors for food appreciation by consumers. It provides symbolic and associative information about the food. The Maillard reaction plays an important role in the appearance and flavour of food subjected to cooking or roasting.

International audience; The time course perception of dishes is important for their appreciation, and the culinary design of flavour by chefs could be improved if based on careful analysis of systems. Temporal Dominance of Sensations (TDS) is an analytical technique that fills the gap between static multidimensional sensory profiling and dynamic unidimensional Time–Intensity by offering a way to assess simultaneously several attributes dynamically over time. Sensory perception while eating a food product is a temporal process. In practice, the computerized TDS system shows the panellist the entire list of attributes on a computer screen. The justification for using TDS with consumers is, of course, to relate temporal descriptive data to liking evaluation of the products given by the same consumers. TDS was used recently to evaluate modulations of the temporality of chocolate perception induced by emotional states mediated by different types of music listened to by consumers during chocolate consumption.