Moral judgment is important in COVID-19 pandemic

The nature of moral judgment is not only of longstanding philosophical interest, but also it is a matter of immediate practical concern. Currently, when the information, the advice, even the science and the sequela of the pandemic COVID-19 are all consistently and rapidly changing, it creates inconsistency in our decision making. Nevertheless, we lack of a detailed scientific understanding of how people make moral decisions. The letter is an effort aimed at understanding moral decision-making during the present pandemic of COVID-19.

Ethnographic journalism and the American urban crisis

The historical role of racial prejudice in the development of black ghettos by the I990s has been a source of contention in urban studies. This paper contends that works of ethnographic journalism such as Alex Kotlowitz's There are no Children Here, David Simon and Ed Bums's The Corner, and Leon Dash's Rosa Lee are critical texts for gaining an informed understanding of the urban crisis because they allow one to make connections with both the empirically observable facts and the shared social experience of the black underclass. By revealing the importance of viewing positivist and interpretivist understandings of the American city as complementary rather than oppositional, these works provide a multifaceted, rather than mutually exclusive, framework for understanding the American urban crisis. This approach allows us to avoid the ontological shortcomings present in traditional methodologies for examining urban poverty-shortcomings that take root in discursive tensions regarding the nature of prejudice in municipal development. Ethnographic journalism evokes the empathy necessary to view urban squalor as a practical concern rather than a spectacle.

Ethnographic journalism and the American urban crisis

The historical role of racial prejudice in the development of black ghettos by the I990s has been a source of contention in urban studies. This paper contends that works of ethnographic journalism such as Alex Kotlowitz's There are no Children Here, David Simon and Ed Bums's The Corner, and Leon Dash's Rosa Lee are critical texts for gaining an informed understanding of the urban crisis because they allow one to make connections with both the empirically observable facts and the shared social experience of the black underclass. By revealing the importance of viewing positivist and interpretivist understandings of the American city as complementary rather than oppositional, these works provide a multifaceted, rather than mutually exclusive, framework for understanding the American urban crisis. This approach allows us to avoid the ontological shortcomings present in traditional methodologies for examining urban poverty-shortcomings that take root in discursive tensions regarding the nature of prejudice in municipal development. Ethnographic journalism evokes the empathy necessary to view urban squalor as a practical concern rather than a spectacle.

MO785CAUSES OF THE DELAY IN CREATING PERMANENT VASCULAR ACCESS IN HEMODIALYSIS PATIENTS

Background and Aims Many patients start HD with central venous catheter (CVC) which has multiple complications This study aims at identifying the physicians’ perspectives regarding the reasons of delayed AVF creation Method This is a cross-sectional questionnaires-based survey designed at discovering the physicians' opinions and perception about the reasons for the delay in the creation of permanent vascular access and patient’s factors, physicians factors, and hospital factors leading to this delay, Results There was a total of 212 participants, of whom 131 (61.8%) were of consultant level. The three most important factors associated with delay in AVF creation were “denial of kidney disease or the need of AVF” (76.4%), “dialysis fears and practical concern” (75.9%) and “the patient refusing to undergo AVF surgery” (73.1%). Significantly fewer consultants (42.7%) than below consultants (45.7%) pointed out that “patient noncompliance with nephrology appointments” was a significant factor (p=0.046). The most important physicians & hospital factors was “insufficient conduction of pre-dialysis care and education about AVF initiation to the patient (63.7%) The respondents were asked to choose one of four possible factors that they felt was the main factor in delaying AVF creation. Over two thirds (68.4%) chose the patient factor as the main factor There was no significant difference in this response whether the respondents were consultants or below consultants (p=0.8)) Conclusion The most agreed on factors associated with AVF creation delay are the denial of the need for dialysis, fear of dialysis and practical concern, insufficient conduction of pre-dialysis care and education about AVF initiation to the patient, and late referral to a nephrologist. a validated approach to patients' selection and referral to vascular access creation that could be applied on different types of patient in different regions is required .

Cancer survivors 75 years and older: physical, emotional and practical needs

ObjectivesTo describe physical, emotional and practical concerns and access to help of Canadian cancer survivors aged 75+ years following treatment.MethodsA survey was designed to identify concerns and access to help across three supportive care domains for cancer survivors 1–3 years post-treatment. Random samples were drawn from 10 provincial cancer registries. Survey packages were mailed to 40 790 survivors with option to reply by mail or online in French or English. Descriptive analysis was conducted.ResultsIn total, 3274 (25%) survivors aged 75+ years responded to the survey. Fifty-five per cent were men, 72% had not experienced metastatic spread and 75% reported comorbid conditions. Eighty-one per cent reported experiencing at least one physical concern, 63% experienced at least one emotional concern and 30% experienced at least one practical concern. The most commonly reported concerns were for two physical changes (fatigue 62% and bladder/urinary problems 39%) and one emotional change (anxiety/fear of recurrence 53%). More than 50% did not receive assistance for 15 concerns across the three domains. The most frequently cited reason for not seeking help for a concern was that they were told it was normal and they did not think anything could be done. Unmet needs existed for all physical, emotional and practical changes ranging from 41% to 88% of respondents.ConclusionsMany older adults are at risk for experiencing physical, emotional and practical concerns following cancer treatment yet are not obtaining help. Action is needed for early identification of these individuals to mitigate the impact of unmet needs for older cancer survivors.

GENDER AS A DOMINANT DRIVING THE ENACTION AND (RE)FRAMING OF THE PERSPECTIVE IN LITERARY TRANSLATION

The paper explores cognitive mechanics of «doing» gender in literary translation and aims at providing a cognitive account of gender as both a function of the translator’s self and the translator’s practical concern, i.e. a meaning-making feature of the literary structure which is to be somehow relayed in the translator’s text. Having initially defined the notions «cognitive dominant» and «perspective», constitutive of the research framework, the author reflects on the instrumental role of gender, integrating biological, cognitive, sociocultural and discourse dimensions of the translator’s activity, as a meta-dominant of the translator’s cognition and discourse, which shapes 1) the translator’s phenomenological perspective, from which the text world is mentally construed and 2) strategic (re)framing of the narrative perspective in the translator’s text. A number of English-Russian translations are discussed to illustrate inherent dynamicity, fluidity, multiplicity, performativity and pervasiveness of gender as a dominant driving translation. Certain cognitive and aesthetic modes of doing and (re)framing gender in translation are distinguished as well. Overall, the research findings evince the urgent need for the translators to adopt and implement a gender-sensitive translation strategy, which is likely to considerably enhance the literary value of their translations.

Large-Scale Particle Image Velocimetry for Estimating Vena-Contracta Width for Flow in Contracted Open Channels

This paper presents the findings of a flume study using large-scale particle velocimetry (LSPIV) to estimate the top-width of the vena contracta formed by an approach open-channel flow entering a contraction of the channel. LSPIV is an image-based method that non-invasively measures two-dimensional instantaneous free-surface velocities of water flow using video equipment. The experiments investigated the requisite dimensions of two essential LSPIV components—search area and interrogation area– to establish the optimum range of these components for use in LSPIV application to contractions of open-channel flows. Of practical concern (e.g., bridge hydraulics) is flow contraction and contraction scour that can occur in the vena contracta region. The study showed that optimum values for the search area (SA) and interrogation area (IA) were 10 and 60 pixels, respectively. Also, the study produced a curve indicating a trend for vena-contracta width narrowing with a variable ratio of approach-channel and contracted-channel widths and varying bed shear stress of approach flow.

Quality of life of mild cognitive impairment patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease on which diabetes mellitus and hypertension play an important role as major risk factors. This study aims to assess the quality of life of MCI patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension. A cross sectional study was carried out in a tertiary care teaching hospital. Cognitive status of patients were assessed by Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination III (ACE-III) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Mild Cognitive Impairment Questionnaire (MCQ) was used to score the quality of life. SPSS 21.0 was used to perform statistical analysis. Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann Whitney U test were used to analyze the relationship between quality of life and demographic parameters. Totally 1887 patients with type 2 DM and hypertension were screened to detect MCI patients. The prevalence of MCI in the population was found to 24.64%. Mean age of the population was 45.12 ± 10.54. Quality of life of patients was affected due to MCI with diabetes and hypertension in early ages. Patients employed in Govt or private sector (p=0.021) and disease duration less than 10 years (p=0.025) had significantly better quality of life. Two domains of MCQ, such as emotional concern and practical concern were assessed separately found that MCI patient’s practical concern scores did not differ significantly from emotional concern scores (p= 0.874). Quality of life was affected in MCI patients with diabetes and hypertension in early ages. Routine clinical examination should consider the quality of life as an important parameter during the patient visit and necessary modifications should be given to enhance the quality of life as well as patient satisfaction.

9. Theories of justice

Theories of justice are at the heart of any serious analysis of law and the legal system. They are an important feature of moral, political, and legal theory. From the Greeks to the present day the question of what constitutes a just society is a fundamental philosophical and practical concern. The disparities in wealth and living conditions between rich and poor countries generates a need for ‘global justice’ that applies to the world at large. This chapter analyses several theories of justice: utilitarianism; the related economic analysis of law; John Rawls’s influential theory of ‘justice as fairness’; Robert Nozick’s ‘entitlement theory’ of justice; the concept of equality; and the novel ‘capability’ approach.

Epilogue

The Epilogue is a meditation on old age, combining further policy thinking on compassion and civic life with a reflection on how the terror of social death can be addressed through the life of the body politic and the body of Christ. The chapter sets an agenda for enquiring into three areas of urgent practical concern: (i) why and how the middle-aged and strong who are in government are investing across the different stages of the life-course; (ii) how growing old can be so consciously embedded as part of civic life’s self-understanding as to enable citizens to live in compassionate relationship to the end of their lives; and, (iii), how an innovative democratic professionalism will be important for the way policies and practices are reformed, especially with a view to collaborating with social movements such as churches in their work of diakonia. On this basis, the emphasis on the role of health professionals as innovators can, therefore, be expanded to include innovation in civic life. To the question of what narrative will bring healing and direction to wayfarers and pilgrims in the remains of their days, the response of the church has been a continual meditation on a particular second-person encounter of new birth amidst old age: Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace.