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Building communities through creative community garden projects is increasingly common and seems to create beneficial effects for participants. This study recognizes the need to understand the impact of gardens on low socioeconomic neighborhoods. By conducting a needs assessment study and establishing a community garden, we were able to study its impact on residents of a neighborhood in Bakersfield, California. Data were collected from residents and garden participants using surveys and focus groups. Findings show overwhelming support for the garden and identify benefits of gardens on physical and mental health, social capacities, and spiritual health of individuals and neighborhoods. The study shows how such university community engagement initiatives provide a macro practice intervention framework for students, practitioners, and leaders.

Google Scholar and academic library discovery systems are both popular resources among academic users for finding scholarly information. By conducting an online survey with 975 users from more than 20 public research universities across the United States, this study comparatively investigates how and why academic users use these two resources. Results show that the ways participants used both resources were similar, and both were perceived as highly "accessible" and "useful." Academic library discovery systems' perceived "comprehensiveness", "subjective norm", "loyalty", and "intended use" were higher than Google Scholar, while Google Scholar's perceived "ease of use", "system quality", and "satisfaction" were higher than that of academic library discovery systems.

Assessing the preparation of preservice candidates for quality teaching, both for mainstream students and for ELs, requires reliable and valid assessments that pay close attention to context, process, and reflection, factors that traditional evaluations of teaching either ignore or undervalue. In this article, the authors focus on one high-stakes preservice teacher performance assessment designed to meet these guidelines. The Performance Assessment for California Teachers (PACT), currently used in 32 teacher preparation programs throughout California, is a comprehensive assessment of knowledge and skills in which candidates analyze and reflect on their own instruction and their students' learning during a "Teaching Event" in their student teaching placements. The authors document how eight elementary teacher candidates from teacher preparation programs throughout California discussed issues related to language and learning for ELs in their extensive written materials about their teaching and their students' learning submitted as part of their PACT Teaching Events. While candidates for elementary credentials can choose to complete a mathematics or a language arts/literacy Teaching Event, the authors focused on those candidates who chose mathematics. The authors focus on mathematics because it is often misunderstood to be a language-free endeavor and because it represents an area in which schools have failed many ELs and other students from non-dominant linguistic backgrounds. The authors argue that the PACT, beyond its function as a high stakes examination used for state licensing decisions, has the potential to provide important information that can serve as formative assessment and feedback for teacher candidates themselves, individual teacher educators, and teacher education programs as a whole. (Contains 1 table and 7 notes.)

Global surface temperatures are projected to increase in the future; this will modify regional precipitation regimes and increase global atmospheric drying. Despite many drought studies examining the consequences of reduced precipitation, there are few experimental studies exploring plant responses to atmospheric drying via relative humidity and vapor pressure deficit (VPD). We examined eight native California perennial grass species grown in pots in a greenhouse in Los Angeles, California for 34 weeks. All pots were well‐watered for 21 weeks, at which point we reduced watering to zero and recorded daily growth and dormancy for 3 weeks. We used this information to better understand the drought tolerance of our species in a larger soil drying × atmospheric drying experiment. In this larger experiment, we grew all eight species together in outdoor mesocosms and measured changes in community composition after 4 years of growth. Soil drying in our small pot experiment mirrored compositional shifts in the larger experiment. Namely, our most drought‐tolerant species in our pot experiment was Poa secunda, due to a summer dormancy strategy. Similarly, the grass community shifted toward P. secunda in the driest soils as P. secunda was mostly unaffected by either soil drying or atmospheric drying. We found that some species responded strongly to soil drying (Elymus glaucus, Festuca idahoensis, and Hordeum b. californicum), while others responded strongly to atmospheric drying (Bromus carinatus and Stipa cernua). As result, community composition shifted in different and interacting ways in response to soil drying, atmospheric drying, and their combination. Further study of community responses to increasing atmospheric aridity is an essential next step to predicting the future consequences of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout the United States, teacher educators are developing new strategies to improve the preparation of mainstream teachers for linguistic diversity. In this article, we explore teacher candidates' responses to the Performance Assessment for California Teachers (PACT), a preservice assessment required for credentialing that requires candidates to consider the English language demands of content-area instruction, to enact supports for English learners and others who may struggle with those demands, and to develop ways to promote the academic language development of these students. We report on a study examining written responses on the PACT from 8 elementary teacher candidates who chose mathematics as the focus for their teaching event. We found that the PACT induced teacher candidates to consider language issues and the needs of language learners in a content area often thought to be language-free, yet one in which language in fact plays a crucial role. Such responses provide important information that can be used not only for credentialing decisions but also by teacher educators, teacher-education programs, and teacher candidates themselves in supporting the academic-language development of ELs in content areas such as mathematics.

This paper addresses the transition of community college students to degree programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The paper presents the results of an evaluation of a two-week residential summer bridge program that recruited community college students from a wide range of academic, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds and included traditional and innovative elements to address academic, social, and career needs. Evaluation data were obtained from pre- and postsurveys, focus groups, and annual tracking surveys about subsequent academic choices and course completion. Results identify the factors that increase the confidence and motivation of students to pursue STEM undergraduate degrees. Student rankings indicate that they found the innovative elements of the bridge program to be the most valuable and transformative in their academic success. (Contains 4 tables.)

Background: The call to recruit and retain teachers of color in urban high-minority schools is based on an assumption of a cultural match with students. Yet new teachers of color may find themselves challenged by students with whom they are supposedly culturally matched. Although past research has examined recruitment, preservice, and veteran experiences of teachers of color, little research investigates the critical novice phase. Purpose: The study examines the induction experiences of new teachers of color in urban high-minority schools as they negotiate challenges about cultural identifications. The research questions ask: How, if at all, do new teachers of color experience sociocultural challenges from students? If they do experience such challenges, how do the teachers respond to them in practice? Participants: Fifteen new teachers of color working in urban high-minority secondary schools in different subject domains in California. The participants include Latino, African American, Asian, Filipino, and biracial new teachers. Research Design: This article draws from cross-case analysis of case studies of new teachers of color on the theme of responses to sociocultural challenges. Data Collection/Analysis: Data are from teacher interviews, classroom observations, and focus groups, reflecting 3 years in the teachers' lives. We coded the data on three levels: preliminary coding of sociocultural challenges, pattern coding of responses to challenges, and cross-case analysis. Findings: The study findings complicate the limited conception of cultural match currently dominating policy and research rhetoric about teachers of color. The authors highlight a surprising new form of "practice shock" that the novices of color experienced when students of color questioned the teachers' cultural identifications, finding them culturally suspect. The study also challenges the prevailing description of novices' response to practice shock as moving toward more control-focused teaching. Instead, most novices at times took up the challenges as teachable moments and opportunities to broaden student conceptions. Teachers drew on "emergent multicultural capital" to negotiate challenges in ways that shaped teaching practice. Conclusions: The literature on novices, drawn from a White-dominant sample, has not included a discussion of sociocultural conflicts or the supports needed in induction years for teachers of color. The study revealed the lack of support that many of the teachers felt in relation to negotiating sociocultural issues. The study raises issues about targeted induction support for teachers of color that educators and researchers should consider as they seek to diversify the workforce.

California has experienced an increase in the size and severity of wildfires in recent years, with wide-ranging impacts to agriculture. The 2020 wildfire season was particularly catastrophic, causing billions of dollars in damage to the state's world-renowned wine industry. Wine grape growers and wine producers statewide were recently surveyed to better understand the wildfire informational resources available to producers, as well as the role wildfire risk plays in operational management decisions. The survey results show that the negative impacts of wildfires on wine production may be the result of wildfire smoke more than of the actual wildfires. We also show that managers do not always make operational changes, even when they perceive increased wildfire risk. Despite diverse sources of wildfire-related information and operational guidance, there is not enough information to effectively manage fire risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

112 Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors are unavailable or unaffordable to many patients in LMIC, including Mexico. Some proposed strategies to improve access include weight-based dosing, vial sharing, or using low-dose IO (immunotherapy) schedules. Despite the potential advantages of low-dose IO to increase access and improve outcomes, there is limited information regarding the use of low-dose IO in real-world clinical practice in LMICs. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey of medical oncologists and hematologists practicing in Mexico. The survey was distributed via email using databases from the Mexican Society of Oncology and the Mexican Society of Hematology, and through physician Whatsapp groups in April and May 2024. The primary objective was to examine the prevalence and reasons of low-dose IO use in real-world clinical practice across Mexico. The survey assessed provider characteristics, prevailing attitudes, and potential barriers to low-dose IO adoption. Results: A total of 154 specialists answered the online survey, of which 77 completed it. The median age was 41 years (range 30-73); forty-five (58.4%) were men, thirty-one were women (40.2%), and two were non-binary. Fifty-nine (77%) were medical oncologists and 18 (23%) were hematologists. Twenty-two (29.3%) worked in private practice, nine (12%) in public institutions, and forty-four (58.7%) practiced in both. Seventy-two percent of respondents reported barriers in acquiring IO and forty-eight percent reported utilizing low-dose IO. For low-dose IO users, nivolumab was the most frequently prescribed drug (76%), followed by pembrolizumab (43%). The most frequent reason for using low-dose IO was reducing treatment-related cost (83% of respondents). Common barriers to low-dose IO use included concerns regarding the efficacy and safety of lower doses and a lack of knowledge about dosing protocols. Fifty respondents (67%) reported complete or moderate confidence in the efficacy of low-dose IO for patients with advanced disease, while only 36 respondents (49%) reported confidence on its efficacy for patients with localized disease. Conclusions: Despite its potential benefits of low-dose IO and a need to improve access to treatment, there are concerns about the efficacy and safety of this strategy among Mexican cancer specialists. Addressing these barriers and identifying facilitators could improve the acceptability of prospective trials studying low-dose IO in Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Psiquiatria is the property of Asociacion Colombiana de Psiquiatria and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: The prevalence of dementia is higher among minoritized Hispanic/Latino populations in the U.S. Development of linguistically relevant and validated cognitive assessments are urgently needed to adequately address the care needs of this at-risk group. List learning tasks are widely used to evaluate verbal episodic memory and are consistently shown to be sensitive to memory deficits across various neurologic etiologies. The aim of this study was to validate a Spanish list learning task developed as a linguistically appropriate measure of memory in a diverse sample of Spanish speaking Bay Area older adults who identify as Hispanic/Latino. Participants and Methods: Cognitive scores were assessed in 72 Spanish-speaking older adults living in the Bay Area, California, originally from different countries across South and Central America [(n=29 with CDR scores of 0; n=31 with CDRs of 0.5; and n=12 with CDR of 1), aged 54-96, 30% male)], who completed the Spanish list learning task and a brief neuropsychological battery. The list learning task contains 9 words, 3 words from 3 different semantic categories. Category exemplars were excluded. Administration includes three immediate recall trials, a 30-second delay free recall, 10-minute delay free and cued recall, and yes/no recognition. In this initial validation study, we selected the 10-minute delay recall trial as our primary variable and looked at several indices of construct validity. We hypothesized delayed free recall would: 1) correlate highly with other episodic memory tasks, and minimally with non-memory tests (controlling for CDR sum of boxes), and 2) show step-wise declines as total CDR increased from 0 to 1 (controlling for age, sex, and education). Results: Delayed recall scores of 30-seconds and 10-minutes showed step-wise declines as CDR scores increased (CDR 0 vs. 1, p<0.001 and CDR 0.5 vs. 1, p=0.001). There were no differences in delayed recall between CDR 0 vs. CDR 0.5 (p>0.05). 10-minute delay showed medium-to-large correlations with UDS Craft Story Delayed Recall (partial r =0.45, p<0.001) and Benson Complex Figure Recall (partial r=0.63, p<0.001). Nonsignificant, weaker associations were observed with measures of executive (F Word Verbal Fluency partial r=0.10, Digit Span Forward partial r=0.12), and language (Animal Fluency partial r=0.18) function. Conclusions: Although there is heterogeneity within Hispanic/Latino populations in the U.S., findings begin to support ecological and construct validity of the Spanish list learning task as a measure of verbal memory in older Spanish-speaking adults in the Bay Area. Supporting ecological validity, delayed recall scores significantly differentiated functionally impaired (CDR=1) from functionally mild or unimpaired older adults (CDR=0 or 0.5), though evidenced less sensitivity differentiating unimpaired from mild stages of illness. The Spanish list learning task evidenced strong construct validity as a measure of episodic memory, including strong correlations with other validated memory tasks, and non-significant correlations with non-memory tasks. Larger studies should account for diversity of Spanish speakers in the U.S to see how region of origin, education, and differences between first- and second-generation Spanish speakers influences performance on the task. Future work incorporating imaging markers of brain structure may help further validate the Spanish list learning task as an appropriate measure of memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Desiccation-tolerant (DT) organisms can lose nearly all their water without dying. Desiccation tolerance allows organisms to survive in a nearly completely dehydrated, dormant state. At the cellular level, sugars and proteins stabilize cellular components and protect them from oxidative damage. However, there are few studies of the dynamics and drivers of whole-plant recovery in vascular DT plants. In vascular DT plants, whole-plant desiccation recovery (resurrection) depends not only on cellular rehydration, but also on the recovery of organs with unequal access to water. In this study, in situ natural and artificial irrigation experiments revealed the dynamics of desiccation recovery in two DT fern species. Organ-specific irrigation experiments revealed that the entire plant resurrected when water was supplied to roots, but leaf hydration alone (foliar water uptake) was insufficient to rehydrate the stele and roots. In both species, pressure applied to petioles of excised desiccated fronds resurrected distal leaf tissue, while capillarity alone was insufficient to resurrect distal pinnules. Upon rehydration, sucrose levels in the rhizome and stele dropped dramatically as starch levels rose, consistent with the role of accumulated sucrose as a desiccation protectant. These findings provide insight into traits that facilitate desiccation recovery in dryland ferns associated with chaparral vegetation of southern California. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Variations in processes for different clinics and health systems can dramatically change the way preventive interventions are implemented. We present a method for documenting these variations using workflow diagrams and demonstrate how understanding workflow aided an electronic health record (EHR) embedded colorectal cancer screening intervention. Materials and Methods: We mapped variation in processes for ordering and documenting fecal testing, current colonoscopy, prior colonoscopies, and pathology results. This work was part of a multi-site cluster-randomized pragmatic trial to test a mailed approach to offering fecal testing at 26 safety net clinics (in eight organizations) in Oregon and Northern California. We created clinic-specific workflow diagrams and then distilled them into consolidated diagrams that captured the variations. Results: Clinics had varied practices for storing and using information about colorectal cancer screening. Developing workflow diagrams of key processes enabled clinics to find optimal ways to send fecal test kits to patients due for screening. The workflows informed the rollout of new EHR tools and identified best practices for data capture. Discussion: Diagramming workflows can have great utility when implementing and refining EHR tools for clinical practice, especially when doing so across multiple clinical sites. The process of developing the workflows uncovered successful practice recommendations and revealed limitations and potential effects of a research intervention. Conclusion: Our method of documenting clinical process variation might inform other EHR-powered, multi-site research and can improve data feedback from EHR systems to clinical caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

California mugwort (Artemisia douglasiana Besser) is used by many indigenous tribes throughout California to treat a variety of conditions, including colds, allergies, and pain. California mugwort is also utilized as women's medicine. Its use is on the rise outside of Native communities, often without the guidance of a traditional healer or experienced herbalist. Because it has been shown to have antiproliferative activity against plant and animal cells, we investigated whether California mugwort extracts have an effect on normal human cells as well as estrogen receptor positive (ER+) and estrogen receptor negative (ER−) human breast cancer cells. Ethanolic and aqueous extracts of A. douglasiana leaves were tested for cytotoxicity against unstimulated normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (hPBMC), as well as against an ER+ human breast cancer cell line (BT-474) and an ER− human breast cancer cell line (MDA-MB-231). An ethanolic leaf extract killed hPBMC, BT-474, and MDA-MB-231 cells with IC50 values of 23.6±0.3, 27±5, and 37±4μg/ml, respectively. An aqueous extract killed hPBMC with an IC50 value of 60±10μg/ml, but had no effect on the two cancer cell lines at concentrations up to 100μg/ml. The results of this study indicate that the cytotoxicity of California mugwort extends to normal human cells, as well as to cancerous cells. Therefore, until further is known about the safety of this medicine, caution should be taken when consuming extracts of California mugwort, whether as a tincture or as a tea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad is the property of Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Instituto de Biologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The community dynamics of algal epiphytes was studied in relation to the area available on Padina concrescens at Los Cerritos, Baja California Sur (Mexico). Monthly surveys were conducted over ten months. Experimental structures were also deployed in order to assess epiphyte-host synchrony and affinity. The results rejected the hypothesis of a synchronous appearance, showing that epiphytes were present all the time and occupied the space available. By the end of the season they covered 60% of all the host's area. The environments from where samples were taken revealed differences in the structure of epiphytes, though their development trend over the host was similar. The exclusive colonization of the artificial substrate by coralline algae is attributed to the behavior of this type of epiphyte. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

San Clemente Basin is part of the California Continental Borderland. Low temperature hydrothermal alteration is suggested for some minerals. Fe-Mn crusts are hydrogenetic (Fe/Mn = 0.83-1.14), with positive Ce anomaly, but no positive Eu anomaly that would suggest hydrothermal influence. Co is depleted (Co = 0.16-0.23%), probably due to dilution by a terrigenous component. The phosphorite is of high grade (P2O5 = 29%), with high Fe and Ca concentrations compared with other phosphorites from the Baja California Peninsula. It has a typical seawater-type REE pattern, and a significant negative Ce anomaly, which is indicative of outer shelf conditions for the San Clemente Basin during the Miocene. No lithologic evidence is found to suggest ophiolite-type rocks, as occurs in the nearby Santa Cruz and San Nicolás Basins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the government's use of eminent domain as public power in taking property from homeowners to benefit private commercial interests. It also presents a case study of how homeowners in Riverside County, California, responded to the taking of their property by local government agencies. In the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitutions, the government is allowed to take property for public use on payment of just compensation which is recognized as power of the government for eminent domain. This eminent domain is an instrumental power that allows the government to act under some power to pursue the public interest.

Examines the effect of victim impact evidence in capital-murder jury trials in California since the United States Supreme Court decided 'Payne v. Tennessee' in 1991. Capital cases occurring in California counties between 1989 and 1994; Likelihood of receiving a death sentence for some crimes.

Explores the notions of citizenship and how the immigrants students in California seek to find a social space. Nativism in 1990s; California's changing faces; Legal and cultural notions of citizenship; Details on the immigrants in California.

The article examines Asian American intermarriage in California. The Asian intermarriages are affected by both assimilation and structural determinants. Intermarriage often results from unbalanced sex ratio. In addition, contextual factors, such as, group size, heterogeneity, socioeconomic inequality, and residential segregation also affect intergroup relations and intermarriage. The article proposed an integrated theory and evaluates it by using a sample of married Asian men and women residing in fourteen MSAs in California in 1980. The group size has a consistently negative effect on out marriage for both men and women. Intermarriage between members of different racial or ethnic groups is affected by two sets of factors that are identified by assimilation and structural theorists.

The article focuses on a new collaborative care model in East Palo Alto, California, which is called Integrated Behavioral Health Services (IBHS). The model includes child and adolescent psychiatry fellows and places a clinician in the community. IBHS provides services to low-income children and teenagers who are at risk for behavioral problems.

The climate of the ocean's eastern boundaries is strongly influenced by subtropical anticyclones. The surface wind stress is predominantly alongshore and equatorward, which promotes upwelling of nutrient-rich subsurface water that supports a high abundance of food resources. Understanding the projected response of upwelling-favourable winds to climate change has broad implications for coastal biogeochemistry, ecology, and fisheries. Here we use a reanalysis, an ensemble of global climate simulations, and an objective algorithm to track anticyclones to investigate the projected changes in upwelling-favourable wind events at the California, Canary, Humboldt, and Benguela coastal upwelling systems. Except for the north Pacific, we find consistent poleward shifts over the ocean basins. We show that the projected changes in upwelling-favourable wind events in these coastal upwelling systems are dynamically linked to a poleward shift of the subtropical ridge (STR), stationary subtropical highs, and migratory anticyclones. Synoptic-scale migratory anticyclones force intense coastal upwelling events, which become more frequent at higher latitudes and less frequent at lower latitudes in the future. Thus, we propose that projected changes in coastal upwelling systems occur in the context of large-scale climatological changes in both tropical atmospheric processes, such as Hadley Cell expansion and poleward migration of subtropical anticyclones, as well as extratropical atmospheric processes, such as trends in annular modes that can modify the frequency and intensity of short-lived strong wind events. Both processes need to be considered to fully explain projected changes at the coastal upwelling systems under anthropogenic climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The length–weight relationship of 21 species of fish from a coastal lagoon in the southwestern Gulf of California was estimated. These species were obtained as bycatch from the artisanal shrimp fishery. A total of 8522 specimens were used to estimate the parameters of the relationship, as well as at least 100 organisms per species. Differences between sexes were not found in any species. The slope ( b) showed values between 2.5 and 3.5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: From 2002 through 2004, time-series sediment trap samples were collected from a depth of 410m in Cuenca Alfonso, Bahía de La Paz, on the SW coast of the Gulf of California. The instrument recorded the impact of the local passage of hurricanes “Ignacio” (24–26 August) and “Marty” (21–23 September) in 2003. These two events accounted for 82% of the total rainfall measured in 2003, equivalent to the annual average precipitation in years without hurricanes. Mean total mass fluxes (TMFs) of 2.88 and 3.58gm−2 d−1 were measured during the week of each hurricane as well as the following week. This may have been enough to produce a lamina in the underlying sediment with characteristics peculiar to such events. The terrigenous component was particularly abundant, with notably higher concentrations of Fe, Sc, Co and Cs and REEs. In contrast, TMFs throughout 2002–2004 (excluding the hurricane periods) averaged only 0.73gm−2 d−1 and had a larger marine biogenic component. The extraordinary elemental fluxes during the 29 days of hurricane-influenced sedimentation represented a great proportion of the totals over an entire “normal” year: Co (67.8%) >Sc (62.6) >Fe (59.6) >Cs (53.4)>Lu (51.5)>La (51.3)>Yb (51.0)>Ce (49.5) >Tb (48.4) >Sm (44.7)>Cr (36.5) >Ca (31.0)>Eu (25.4%). The terrigenous fraction was calculated using (a) TMF minus the sum of CaCO3, biogenic silica and organic matter and (b) the ratio of Sc in the trap samples to the average in the Earth''s crust. The latter was consistently smaller, but the two methods offered similar results following hurricanes (78% vs. 63%, respectively). For normal sedimentation, however, the difference method yielded values twice as large as the Sc method (58% vs. 30%) This suggests that the mineralogy of the terrigenous fraction may also vary, with unsorted dessert soil being carried to sea by the powerful flash floods associated with hurricanes. Eolian supply of particles, particularly Sc-free quartz grains, possibly from beyond the limited fluvial drainage basin, apparently dominates normal sedimentation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The effect of the artisanal shrimp fishery on the fish fauna in the coastal lagoon of Santa María la Reforma, Mexico, was assessed. Twenty-nine stations were sampled monthly for shrimp and fin fish during six months, from December 2001 to May 2002, using small boats fitted with outboard engines and the three fishing gears employed by shrimp fishermen in the area: small shrimp trawl net, gillnet, and suripera net. Each sampling period lasted five days. In total, 11,368 individuals were caught, comprising 173 fish species. The species best represented in terms of number and biomass included the commercially important species Eucinostomus entomelas, Sphoeroides annulatus, Urotrygon chilensis, and Diapterus peruvianus. The highest abundance and biomass, as determined by boostrapping of the lognormal-based estimator, were caught with the shrimp trawl net. The mean total length of the fish captured was 17.4 cm for the gillnet, 15.8 cm for the shrimp trawl net, and 13.4 cm for the suripera net. The fishing gear that had a greater impact on the fish fauna were the shrimp trawl net and the gillnet, because they caught the greatest number of fish, biomass and diversity, and a large quantity of small individuals. These two fishing gears caught fish fauna from both the bottom and the water column, and showed the lowest fish/shrimp ratio in kilograms. The shrimp trawl net caught a 6:1 ratio, the gillnet a 15:1 ratio, and the suripera net a 1:1 ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oncology patients receive information about End- of-Life (EOL) care and advance care planning within the last three months of life. A chart review at a multidisciplinary upper aerodigestive oncology clinic, of patients undergoing definitive radiation treatment of upper aerodigestive tumors (N=32), revealed three (9.4%) patients had an advance directives on file. The purpose of this quality improvement is to increase the number of patients with advance directives, including Medical Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment or code status, on file in a diverse oncology clinic through introduction of advance directives at initial consultation. A discussion about advanced directives will occur at the patient's initial visit through written and verbal information given by the multidisciplinary coordinator. Patient care technicians will mark in the electronic medical record if the patient has an advance directive or not and if it is on file. Follow up conversations on advance directives will happen by nursing staff and medical providers at future visits. Data collection started September 1, 2021 and will run for 12 weeks. Preliminary findings suggest patients are receptive to receiving information about advance directives at the initial consult visit. After two weeks of data collection, 100% of patients (n=6) received information about advance directives at the initial consult and one patient has brought an advance directive to be filed. The preliminary results suggest advance directives at the initial consult can improve patient satisfaction. Ongoing evaluation includes the use of the advance directive review button in the electronic medical record, tracking advance directive information provided to patients at initial consult, and number of patients who have advance directives on file. We anticipate an increase in the number of patients receiving advance directive information at initial consult as well as the number of advance directives on file. Throughout data collection run charts will be used to demonstrate progress on the use of the electronic health record to document advance directives on file, advance directive information received by patients at their initial consult, patients with advance directives on file following initial consult and patients who are resistant to discussions about advance directives related to psychosocial factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although health departments routinely inspect restaurants to, assess compliance with established hygienic standards, few data are available on the effectiveness of these efforts in preventing foodborne disease. The study reported here assessed the impact on foodborne-disease hospitalizations in Los Angeles County of a restaurant hygiene grading system that utilized publicly posted grade cards. The grading system was introduced in January 1998. Hospital discharge data on foodborne-disease hospitalizations were analyzed for Los Angeles County and, as a control, for the rest of California during the period 1993-2000. Ordinary least-squares regression analysis was done to measure the effect of the grading program on these hospitalizations. After baseline temporal and geographic trends were adjusted for, the restaurant hygiene grading program was associated with a 13.1 percent decrease (p < .01) in the number of foodborne-disease hospitalizations in Los Angeles County in the year following implementation of the program (1998). This decrease was sustained over the next two years (1999-2000). The results suggest that restaurant hygiene grading with public posting of results is an effective intervention for reducing the burden of foodborne disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The California Bridge Project was developed to actively locate out-of-treatment HIV-positive persons and link them to HIV care and treatment services. Three hundred and twenty five clients had never received HIV medical care. Among these clients the average time from HIV diagnosis to contact with project staff was one-and-a-half years. Nearly three-fourth of clients were persons of color and almost half were men who have sex with men (MSM). The project was effective in linking 29.2% of clients to medical care. First contact to linkage required an average of 15.4 client contacts. During these encounters project staff assessed clients' risk behaviors and physical and mental health status and addressed real or perceived barriers to care. Latinos were over two times (adjusted OR = 2.33, p=0.034) and African Americans over three times (adjusted OR = 3.69, p=0.002) more likely than whites to be linked to medical care. Success in linking persons of color to medical care may have been because the majority of project staff were persons of color who were purposely hired with characteristics similar to those of the target population. The Bridge Project demonstrates the challenges faced in attempting to link HIV-positive persons from underserved and marginalized populations to medical care.

Our objectives were to describe the strategies and successes in linking out-of-treatment HIV-infected persons of color and injection drug users (IDUs) to a comprehensive HIV care, treatment, and prevention program and other community services. Peer-based outreach staff at 21 sites throughout California provided assessments and referrals to 1453 persons living with HIV but without routine care. A linkage was defined as the receipt of a referred service. Half (49.7%) of persons of color and 41.6% of IDUs received services at a California Early Intervention Program (EIP) site after the date of first contact with peer staff; 58.1% of clients referred to EIP were linked to the program. IDUs were less likely to link to EIP. However, IDU clients were less likely to be referred to EIP, and more likely to be referred and linked to other community programs. Interventions such as the California Bridge Project can effectively link HIV-infected persons from marginalized populations to care, treatment, and prevention services. Programs that address immediate needs such as housing are more appealing to IDUs than programs offering HIV medical care.