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Background: End-stage liver disease (ESLD) patients carry heavy symptom burdens and risk receiving aggressive and sometimes unwanted care at end of life. Palliative care (PC), which aims to alleviate symptoms and facilitate goal-concordant care in serious illness, may offer substantial benefits for ESLD patients but is not widely provided. Objectives: To assess the impact of PC integrated within hepatology (PCIH) services on health care utilization, advance care planning (ACP), and hospice enrollment. Design: We compared patients who received PCIH (n = 55) to a retrospective cohort (n = 57) receiving usual care in an outpatient hepatology clinic. Setting/Subjects: From June 2016 to November 2017, we enrolled patients receiving care in a U.S. public hospital clinic who met the following inclusion criteria: (1) ESLD with a Model for End-Stage Liver Disease score ≥20, (2) hepatology approval for PC referral, and (3) at least one advanced complication of ESLD. Measurements: We assessed patient demographics, clinical information, health care insurance status, health care utilization, completion of psychosocial assessments, and ACP using two-sided Fisher's exact test and Mann–Whitney U tests. Results: Patients receiving PCIH more frequently had goals of care discussions (87.3% vs. 21.2% p ≤ 0.01), completed ACP documentation (56.4% vs. 7.0%, p ≤ 0.01), psychosocial assessments (98.2% vs. 35.1%, p ≤ 0.01), and hospice enrollment (25.5% vs. 7.0%, p = 0.01). Patients receiving PCIH who were hospitalized also had fewer mean hospitalization days (13 vs. 19.7 days, p ≤ 0.01). Conclusions: Embedding PC services in a hepatology clinic is a promising strategy to improve care for ESLD patients in public hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article details the development of a residual-income model showing how taxes on dividends affect the relative valuation of retained earnings against contributed equity, and the value of expected future earnings in the United States. The article suggests that overall firm value, and the relative valuation weights investors assign to retained earnings, contributed equity, and current earnings, all critically depend on dividend taxes. Evidence is presented that shows that investors take a proprietary perspective in valuation and in impute on unrecorded shareholder-level tax liability on retained earnings.

Bill Cosby's immorality has raised intriguing aesthetic and ethical issues. Do the crimes that he has been convicted of lessen the aesthetic value of his stand-up and, even if we can enjoy it, should we? This article first discusses the intimate relationship between the comedian and audience. The art form itself is structurally intimate, and at the same time the comedian claims to express an authentic self on stage. After drawing an analogy between the question of the moral character of comedians and the aesthetic value of their stand-up and the debate over the ethical criticism of art, this article argues that it is reasonable to find a comedian's performance less funny, because stand-up's artistic success relies on this intimacy. It contrasts the comedy of Bill Cosby with that of Louis C.K. whose moral flaws are much more present in his comedy, and it is therefore more difficult to find him funny. Last, it is ethically permissible to enjoy their comedy, if no harm to others results, both because it does not corrupt the audience's character and because amusement is valuable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents information about a study which examines the effects of tax incentives on production location choices of American multinational corporations (MNCs). It also examines the relation between the ratio of export sales to foreign production sales and measures of the export tax incentive for manufacturing MNCs during the period from 1984 to 1992. The sample includes U.S. manufacturing firms with the necessary data to construct the measures of interest. All sample firms have at least $1 million in foreign sales and positive values in both foreign and domestic income. The results indicate that taxes induce U.S. multinationals to prefer exports rather than foreign production to serve unaffiliated customers in foreign markets. Specifically, the ratio of exports to foreign production sales to unaffiliated foreign customers is positively related to firm-specific export tax incentives. The results also suggest that U.S. multinationals do not rely exclusively on financing or accounting strategies to solve their tax problems. Instead, they also make real changes in production.

This article presents information about a study which investigates the extent to which American multinational enterprises (MNEs) engage in tax-motivated income shifting between the United States and foreign jurisdictions and whether investors differentially capitalize the shifted income. In this study, researchers examined U.S. multinational manufacturing corporations from 1984 to 1992 to determine the cross-sectional relation between firm-level foreign profit margins and average foreign tax rates. The results of the study show that U.S. MNEs with average foreign tax rates in excess of the U.S. tax rate (and thus likely facing foreign tax credit limitations) have lower pretax foreign profit margins than other U.S. MNEs. This evidence is consistent with, income shifting from high-tax foreign jurisdictions into the United States and indicates that tax policymakers' efforts to further constrain income-shifting opportunities could result in a U.S. tax revenue decrease from some taxpayers. Results also indicate that investors seem to factor in the true geographic income source in capitalizing foreign earnings shifted to the U.S.

The article looks at the benefits of whistleblower incentive programs to the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in the U.S. It discusses the country's whistleblower laws, including provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Act and the related rules from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The moral and ethical aspects of incentivizing whistleblowing are explored, as well as the international attitudes toward whistleblower award systems.

Abstract: The commonality of influenza A virus (IAV) exposure and vaccination on swine farms in the United States ensures that the majority of neonatal pigs will have some degree of maternal immunity to IAV. The influence of maternal immunity on IAV transmission in neonatal pig populations will impact virus prevalence and infection dynamics across pig populations. The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of maternally derived immunity on IAV transmission in an experimental setting. Neonatal pigs suckled colostrum and derived maternal (passive) immunity from sows in one of three treatment groups: (a) non-vaccinated control (CTRL) or vaccinated with (b) homologous (PASSV-HOM) or (c) heterologous (PASSV-HET) inactivated experimental IAV vaccines. Sentinel neonatal pigs derived from the groups above were challenged with IAV via direct contact with an experimentally infected pig (seeder pig) and monitored for IAV infection daily via nasal swab sampling. A susceptible-infectious-recovered (SIR) experimental model was used to obtain and estimate transmission parameters in each treatment group via a generalized linear model. All sentinel pigs in the CTRL (30/30) and PASSV-HET (30/30) groups were infected with IAV following contact with the seeder pigs and the reproduction ratio estimates (95% confidence interval) were 10.4 (6.6–15.8) and 7.1 (4.2–11.3), respectively. In contrast, 1/20 sentinel pigs in the PASSV-HOM group was infected following contact with the seeder pigs and the reproduction ratio estimate was significantly lower compared to the CTRL and PASSV-HET groups at 0.8 (0.1–3.7). Under the conditions of this study, IAV transmission was reduced in neonatal pigs with homologous maternal immunity compared to seronegative neonatal pigs and pigs with heterologous maternal immunity as defined in this study. This study provides estimates for IAV transmission in pigs with differing types of maternal immunity which may describe the influence of maternal immunity on IAV prevalence and infection dynamics in pig populations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this article, the author discusses the consequences of shareholder litigations that are filed regarding the violation of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by international business enterprises. It informs that shareholders can impose securities fraud class action lawsuits on organizations which are violation FCPA. It states that FCPA-based collateral shareholder litigation contributes in the federalization of the law and also increase the use of compliance programs by organizations.

Copyright of Journal of Communication is the property of Oxford University Press / USA 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 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) was enacted over thirty years ago to prohibit bribery of foreign officials by U.S. persons. In the last few years, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have dramatically expanded the FCPA through a surge in its enforcement. Responding to complex developments in law, the global economy, and agency politics, the DOJ and the SEC have brought ten times as many cases as in prior years, and assessed hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties. At the same time, the substantive reach of the law has been extended through the increased enforcement. Thus, ad hoc enforcement actions, rather than legislation, regulation, or judicial decision, have transformed the FCPA. In the absence of formal process or reasoned articulation, the scope of the law is currently unclear. Businesses have little official guidance in designing effective compliance programs and may be more likely to violate the FCPA. Unruly enforcement, and the resulting lack of clarity about what the FCPA requires, may compromise the law's efficacy. Therefore the DOJ and the SEC should encourage compliance by providing clear, general guidance about the scope of the FCPA. The Article concludes with specific questions about the FCPA that such guidance should resolve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the provision of adequate welfare for gestating sows in the U.S. Factors to consider in designing the housing of sows; Responsibilities of swine caregivers; Role of veterinarians in identifying opportunities for farm improvements.

The article provides information on an investigative case, a component of a much larger program called Problems and Research Integrating Science and Math (PRISM), which is funded by through GK-12 grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation. Good, Messy, Frothing Fun case reflects many of the core concepts that underscore the PRISM program. The case is intended for implementation at the beginning of the school year, as introduction to a lab-based science class for middle school students. Cases involve messy, real-life scenarios and open-ended situations that push the learner to take an active and investigative role.

Investigates the thermoregulation and habitat use in two sympatric lizard species of the family Phrynosomatidae in southern New Mexico. Measurement of lizard temperature preference; Calculation of the several indices of thermoregulation; Comparison of micro-and-macro habitat use of the species.

Provides a framework for understanding the use and effectiveness of veto threats in the U.S. Information on vetoing legislation, one of the tools used by the president in the policy-making process; Perspectives on the relationship between the president and the U.S. Congress; Possible outcomes of the bargaining process; Details of several assumptions on the presidential-congressional interaction; Analysis of two policy case studies from the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush.

Women are no longer token participants in the governing process in U.S. state legislatures. Rather, they comprise more than one fifth of the state legislative membership and have become a visible force in leadership, holding about fifteen percent of all leadership positions. Unfortunately, there has been no systematic effort to examine the differences between the issue priorities of men and women leaders. Given the growing number of women in leadership and the importance of leaders as agenda setters, this question warrants attention. Our results indicate that while women are a growing part of modern legislative leadership teams, they are less prominent in key leadership positions. Women leaders in our sample do have legislative agendas distinct from their male counterparts. Specifically, women leaders are more likely to report issues of traditional concern to women: health care, social services, women's family and children's issues, and the environment as priorities. They are less likely than are men to emphasize taxes, budget matters, public safety, institutional regulation and matters of insurance or product liability as legislative priorities. Further, we find that differences between women and men leaders remain significant when controls for party, race, experience, type of leadership position and region are included in the model. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: Website: © 2001 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the effects of policy expertise and leadership skills on the career of legislative leaders in the United States. Importance of experience, policy expertise and leadership skills; Participation of legislative leaders in national professional organization; Extensibility of the interest of legislative leaders in career advancement.

The article discusses the author's perspectives on the current transportation policy in the United States. The author's career began in 1956 as a traffic engineer working for the city of Nashville, Tennessee. The 1956 Highway Act had authorized the building of the Interstate Highway System, and had set up the trust fund and other financial apparatus that permitted construction to begin. Nashville was to be the intersection of six legs of the Interstate, and was to include both an inner and outer loop to connect the branches. As transportation planners the author genuinely believed that one of the benefits of building the Interstate would be the chance to remove areas of decayed housing and replace them with new public housing. Finding such slum areas to build the roads appealed to their desire to build as cheaply as possible and simultaneously accomplish other worthy goals. The transportation community of both infrastructure and vehicles resisted the added requirements. The time between conception and completion for a major new project was too long already. Additional planning requirements would make it longer yet. The vehicle industry was already the target of a cascade of new safety and environmental requirements, which added to the cost of new cars and trucks.

Examines the implementation and trends of teleconferencing media in the U.S. Study conducted to measure implementation and trends of teleconferencing media; Departmental usage of audio conferencing; Views of people on the installation of computer conferencing.

Grubert et al. (1993) document a persistence of foreign-controlled domestic corporation taxable income around zero which has been interpreted by many, including tax policymakers, as suggesting transfer pricing. We examine foreign-controlled domestic corporations (FCDCs) within the wholesale trade industry from 1981 to 1990 to determine if this prevalence of near-zero taxable income is linked to manipulation of transfer prices on inventory purchases. We find no difference in the relation between sales and gross profit between near-zero FCDCs and near-zero control companies that are uncontaminated by cross-jurisdictional income shifting manipulation. Our inability to document transfer price manipulation by investigating an industry and the accounts where manipulation is alleged to be most egregious suggests that previous inferences of transfer price manipulation based on the persistence of foreign-controlled U.S. corporation taxable income around zero are premature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reviews the exhibition 'Loss and Renewal: Transforming Tragic Sites,' held in Dallas, Texas, through December 2002.

Background: Long length of stays (LOS) in emergency departments (ED) negatively affect quality of care. Ordering of inappropriate diagnostic tests contributes to long LOS and reduces quality of care. One strategy to change practice patterns is to use performance feedback dashboards for physicians. While this strategy has proven to be successful in multiple settings, the most effective ways to deliver such interventions remain unknown. Involving end-users in the process is likely important for a successful design and implementation of a performance dashboard within a specific workplace culture. This mixed methods study aimed to develop design requirements for an ED performance dashboard and to understand the role of culture and social networks in the adoption process.Methods: We performed 13 semi-structured interviews with attending physicians in different roles within a single public ED in the U.S. to get an in-depth understanding of physicians' needs and concerns. Principles of human-centered design were used to translate these interviews into design requirements and to iteratively develop a front-end performance feedback dashboard. Pre- and post- surveys were used to evaluate the effect of the dashboard on physicians' motivation and to measure their perception of the usefulness of the dashboard. Data on the ED culture and underlying social network were collected. Outcomes were compared between physicians involved in the human-centered design process, those with exposure to the design process through the ED social network, and those with limited exposure.Results: Key design requirements obtained from the interviews were ease of access, drilldown functionality, customization, and a visual data display including monthly time-trends and blinded peer-comparisons. Identified barriers included concerns about unintended consequences and the veracity of underlying data. The surveys revealed that the ED culture and social network are associated with reported usefulness of the dashboard. Additionally, physicians' motivation was differentially affected by the dashboard based on their position in the social network.Conclusions: This study demonstrates the feasibility of designing a performance feedback dashboard using a human-centered design approach in the ED setting. Additionally, we show preliminary evidence that the culture and underlying social network are of key importance for successful adoption of a dashboard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using multiple metrics, the diversity of the pediatric population in the United States is increasing. However, recent data suggest significant disparities in both the prevalence and management of child health conditions cared for by pediatric subspecialists. These inequities occur across multiple dimensions of diversity, including race and ethnicity, country of origin, socioeconomic status, sex and gender, and disability. Research also suggests that attending to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the medical workforce may positively affect health outcomes. High-quality pediatric subspecialty care thus requires knowledge of these data, attention to the effects of social drivers, including racism and discrimination, on health and wellbeing, and interventions to improve pediatric health equity through educational, practice, policy, and research innovations. In this article, we review data on the diversity of the pediatric population and pediatric subspecialty workforce, suggest potential strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of current diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in academic pediatrics, and provide recommendations across 4 domains: education and training, practice, policy, and future research. The ultimate goal of pediatrics is to improve health equity for all infants, children, adolescents, and young adults cared for in the United States by pediatric subspecialists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The field of youth development is expanding, requiring 4-H Extension staff to gain expertise in the field without leaving their jobs to return to school. To address this need, the 4-H Youth Development Practitioner Apprenticeship (YDPA) program was developed under the guidance of the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents and the National 4-H Council through funding from the U. S. Department of Labor. An evaluation of the pilot of YDPA found that staff gained numerous skills needed to effectively serve youth. Suggestions for program continuation are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Outlines how Extension administrators, granting agencies and policy makers are working to adapt an older youth and adult version of the Life Skills System for younger audiences. Information on the Washington State University Life Skills Evaluation System; List of life skills selected by Extension staff from the Targeting Life Skills model that they believed they were teaching through their program; Background of a 4-H Youth Camp held in the northwest corner of Montana.

Background: Despite the significant increase in emergency room visits for opioid overdose, only few emergency departments (ED) have implemented best practices to treat people with opioid use disorders (OUD). Some implementation gaps may be due to practitioner factors; such as support for medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for OUD in the ED. In this study, we explore the relationship between inner setting characteristics of the EDs (e.g., leadership, readiness for change, organizational climate) and practitioner support for OUD treatment and attitudes towards people with OUD.Methods: We surveyed 241 ED practitioners (e.g., physicians, nurses, social workers) at one of the largest EDs in the United States. We used analysis of variance and chi-square global tests to compare responses from ED practitioners in differing roles. We also conducted five multivariate logistic regressions to explore associations between ED inner setting characteristics and five antecedents of implementation; ED practitioner (1) supports MAT for OUD in the ED, (2) supports best practices to treat OUD, (3) has self-efficacy to treat OUD, (4) has stereotypes of people who use drugs, and (5) has optimism to treat people with OUD.Results: We found nurses were more likely than physicians to support MAT for OUD in the ED and delivering other best practices to treat OUD. At the same time, nurses had greater bias than physicians against working with patients suffering from OUD. We also found the ED's climate for innovation and practitioners' readiness for change were positively associated with support for MAT for OUD in the ED and using best practices to treat OUD.Conclusions: Findings suggest that professional roles and some ED inner setting factors play an important role in antecedents of implementation of OUD treatment in the ED. To prepare EDs to effectively respond to the current opioid overdose epidemic, it is critical to further understand the impact of these organizational factors on the implementation of evidence-based OUD treatment practices in the nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]