Correlations on radioimmunoassay, fluorescence polarization immunoassay, and enzyme immunoassay of cannabis metabolites with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis of 11-nor-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid in urine specimens.

Results obtained from three commercial immunoassay kits, Abuscreen, TDx, and EMIT, commonly used for the initial test of urine cannabinoids (and metabolites) were correlated with the 11-nor-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (9-THC-COOH) concentration as determined by GC/MS. Correlation coefficients obtained based on 26 (out of 1359 total sample population) highly relevant samples, are 0.601 and 0.438 for Abuscreen and TDx. Correlation coefficients obtained from a parallel study on a different set of 47 (out of 5070 total sample population) highly relevant specimens are 0.658 and 0.575 for Abuscreen and Emit. The immunoassay concentration levels, that correspond to the commonly used 15 ng/ml GC/MS cutoff value for 9-THC-COOH, as calculated from the regression equations are 82 ng/ml and 75 ng/ml for TDx and EMIT and 120 ng/ml and 72 ng/ml for Abuscreen manufactured at two different time periods. The difference of these calculated corresponding concentrations provides quantitative evidence of the reagent specificity differences.     

“We Weren’t Ready”: Provider Perspectives on Addressing Intimate Partner Violence Among Refugees and Immigrants in The United States

This study examined organizational factors influencing the availability and accessibility of IPV services for refugee and other vulnerable immigrant women in the U.S. from the perspectives of social service providers. This qualitative study used a purposive sampling approach to recruit 57 social service providers. Researchers analyzed data generated from individual interviews and focus group discussions using a thematic approach. The analysis generated four themes reflective of structural and systemic factors shaping the availability and accessibility of IPV services for immigrant and refugee women in the U.S.: (1) We weren’t ready, (2) No place to go, (3) Time is not on our side, and (4) Can’t do it alone. The analysis illuminated the extent to which service demands outweighed organizational capacities and the rigidity of service timelines that failed to meet needs. A pervasive thread of ethical dilemmas emerged, affecting the availability and accessibility of services. Overall, the findings form a compelling argument for structural shifts in policy and funding, and for fostering strong inter-sectoral coordination to combat barriers to services. The study reiterates the importance of addressing inter-agency collaboration in IPV research, policy, and practice.

     

Three conditions under which experiments and observational studies produce comparable causal estimates: New findings from within‐study comparisons

This paper analyzes 12 recent within‐study comparisons contrasting causal estimates from a randomized experiment with those from an observational study sharing the same treatment group. The aim is to test whether different causal estimates result when a counterfactual group is formed, either with or without random assignment, and when statistical adjustments for selection are made in the group from which random assignment is absent. We identify three studies comparing experiments and regression‐discontinuity (RD) studies. They produce quite comparable causal estimates at points around the RD cutoff. We identify three other studies where the quasi‐experiment involves careful intact group matching on the pretest. Despite the logical possibility of hidden bias in this instance, all three cases also reproduce their experimental estimates, especially if the match is geographically local. We then identify two studies where the treatment and nonrandomized comparison groups manifestly differ at pretest but where the selection process into treatment is completely or very plausibly known. Here too, experimental results are recreated. Two of the remaining studies result in correspondent experimental and nonexperimental results under some circumstances but not others, while two others produce different experimental and nonexperimental estimates, though in each case the observational study was poorly designed and analyzed. Such evidence is more promising than what was achieved in past within‐study comparisons, most involving job training. Reasons for this difference are discussed. © 2008 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Are they really so different? Climate change rule development in the USA and UK

Climate change is an increasingly complex and global environmental issue. As a result, scholars have begun to compare the efforts of specific countries such as the UK and the USA in dealing with climate change. However, missing within this comparative literature is a discussion of the important role that administrative agencies play in implementing climate change policy through rulemaking. More specifically, it is unclear how administrative processes may impact or explain variations in the policy implemented within a given country. In fact, it has been over 25 years since Vogel's work compared the regulatory processes of the USA and UK. As a result, this paper's interviews with agency rule writers in both countries provide an updated comparison of their rulemaking processes, which is essential to understanding why countries may vary in the climate change policy they implement. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Acidosis, lactate, electrolytes, muscle enzymes, and other factors in the blood of Sus scrofa following repeated TASER exposures

Repeated exposure to electro-muscular incapacitating devices could result in repetitive, sustained muscle contraction, with little or no muscle recovery period. Therefore, rhabdomyolysis and other physiological responses, including acidosis, hyperkalaemia, and altered levels of muscle enzymes in the blood, would be likely to occur. Experiments were performed to investigate effects of repeated exposures of TASER International's Advanced TASER X26 on muscle contraction and resultant changes in blood factors in an anaesthetized swine model. A total of 10 animals were used. Six swine were exposed for 5 s, followed by a 5-s period of no exposure, repeatedly for 3 min. (In five of the animals, after a 1-h delay, a second 3-min exposure period was added.) The remaining four animals were used for an additional pilot study. All four limbs of each animal exhibited contraction even though the electrodes were positioned in areas at some distances from the limbs. The degree of muscle contraction generated during the second exposure period was significantly lower than that in the first exposure series. This finding was consistent with previous studies showing that prolonged activity in skeletal muscle will eventually result in a decline of force production. There were some similarities in blood sample changes in the current experiments with previous studies of muscular exercise. Thus problems concerning biological effects of repeated TASER exposures may be related, not directly to the "electric output" per se, but rather to the resulting contraction of muscles (and related interruption of respiration) and subsequent sequelae. Transient increases in hematocrit, potassium, and sodium were consistent with previous reports in the literature dealing with studies of muscle stimulation or exercise. It is doubtful that these short-term elevations would have any serious health consequences in a healthy individual. Blood pH was significantly decreased for 1h following exposure, but subsequently returned toward a normal level. Leg muscle contractions and decreases in respiration each appeared to contribute to the acidosis. Lactate was highly elevated, with a slow return (time course greater than 1 h) to baseline. Other investigators have reported profound metabolic acidosis during restraint-associated cardiac arrest. Since restraint often occurs immediately after TASER exposure, this issue should be considered in further development of deployment concepts. On the basis of the results of the current studies, the repeated use of electro-muscular incapacitating devices in a short period of time is, at least, feasible, with the caveat that some medical monitoring of subjects may be required (to observe factors such as lactate and acidosis).     

Packing Heat in the Classroom: Public Support for “Armed Teacher” Policy

ABSTRACT

Recently, states have enacted teacher-carry laws. While controversial, little scholarship has tapped public attitudes toward such reforms. Because public opinion shapes policy, the public is an important stakeholder in this debate. Thus, we investigated three questions. First, how supportive is the public of arming teachers? Second, what demographic and social divides exist, if any, for reform approval? Finally, do crime-related perceptions, concerning views about public safety, and criminogenic influences shape policy preferences? We test these questions using a 2018 poll of Virginia residents (N = 521). Overall, approval for teacher-carry is split. Crime-related perceptions mediate some of the initial social and demographic divides in opinion but other correlates, such as parental status, remain salient predictors of views. Implications are discussed.     

Development of an Index of Subsidized Housing Availability and its Relationship to Housing Insecurity

Housing insecurity is a known threat to child health understanding predictors of housing insecurity can help inform policies to protect the health of young children in low-income households. This study sheds light on the relationship between housing insecurity and availability of housing that is affordable to low-income households.

We developed a county-level index of availability of subsidized housing needed to meet the demand of low-income households. Our results estimate that if subsidized units are made available to an additional 5% of the eligible population, the odds of overcrowding decrease by 26% and the odds of families making multiple moves decrease by 31%. Both of these are known predictors of poor child health outcomes. Thus, these results suggest that state and federal investments in expanding the stock of subsidized housing could reduce housing insecurity and thereby also improve the health and well-being of young children, including their families' food security status.