New Omnidirectional Sensor Based on Open-Source Software and Hardware for Tracking and Backtracking of Dual-Axis Solar Trackers in Photovoltaic Plants.

In this work, an omnidirectional sensor that enables identification of the direction of the celestial sphere with maximum solar irradiance is presented. The sensor, based on instantaneous measurements, functions as a position server for dual-axis solar trackers in photovoltaic plants. The proposed device has been developed with free software and hardware, which makes it a pioneering solution because it is open and accessible as well as capable of being improved by the scientific community, thereby contributing to the rapid advancement of technology. In addition, the device includes an algorithm developed ex professo that makes it possible to predetermine the regions of the celestial sphere for which, according to the geometric characteristics of the PV plant, there would be shading between the panels. In this way, solar trackers do not have to locate the Sun's position at all times according to astronomical models, while taking into account factors such as shadows or cloudiness that also affect levels of incident irradiance on solar collectors. Therefore, with this device, it is possible to provide photovoltaic plants with dual-axis solar tracking with a low-cost device that helps to optimise the trajectory of the trackers and, consequently, their radiative capture and energy production.

Factores relacionados con la sobrecarga que intervienen sobre la salud, las actividades económicas, laborales y sociales de los cuidadores principales de pacientes crónicos / Factors related to work overload that affect health, financial, occupational, and social activities of the primary caregiver

OBJETIVO: Conocer áreas de la vida de los cuidadores principales (CP) que pueden afectarse por cuidar en relación con variables del paciente y de CP: problemas de salud, laborales, económicos y sociales y el papel que la sobrecarga de los CP puede tener. MATERIAL Y MÉTODOS: Estudio transversal y descriptivo, 167 enfermos crónicos dependientes y sus CP. Se analizan impactos de cuidar sobre problemas de salud, laborales y económicos, mantener relaciones sociales en CP, variables demográficas, edad y sexo, cuidados, actividades y tiempo de cuidar. Pacientes dependientes, se estudia la tipología psicosocial de su enfermedad, cronología, dependencia, discapacidad e inmovilidad. Para el estudio de la sobrecarga de los CP se ha empleado la escala de Zarit reducida de ocho ítems. RESULTADOS: El 68,8% de los CP tenían problemas de salud, 20,9% económicos, 19,6% laborales y 50,9% para mantener relaciones familiares y sociales positivas. El impacto sobre la salud de los CP se relaciona con la tipología psicosocial A, mayor grado de dependencia e inmovilidad, género y mayor número de actividades de cuidar. El impacto sobre las actividades laborales se relaciona con la edad (< 66 años), género y convivencia en el hogar. El impacto sobre las relaciones sociales solo se relaciona con el parentesco. Los problemas económicos no tienen relación con variables del paciente. La sobrecarga de los CP se relaciona con problemas de salud, laborales, económicos y sociales. CONCLUSIONES: El impacto sobre la salud y las áreas económica, laboral y social de los CP se relacionan con variables de la persona enferma y de CP y especialmente con la sobrecarga percibida por los CP

OBJECTIVE: To determine the areas of the life of primary caregivers (CP) that may be affected by caring for a patient, as well as the CP variables: health, occupational, economic and social problems, as well as the role that CP overload can play. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 167 dependent chronic patients and their CPs. It included and analysis on the impact of caring about health, occupational, and economic problems, as well as maintaining social relationships in CP. A record was made of, demographic variables, age and gender, care, activities, time to care. For the dependent patients, the psychosocial typology of their disease, chronology, dependence, disability, and immobility was studied. The Zarit scale reduced by 8 items has been used for the study of the overload of CPs. RESULTS: More than two-thirds (68.8%) of CPs had health problems, 20.9% economic, 19.6% occupational, and 50.9% for positive family and social relationships. The health impact of CPs is related to psychosocial A typology, an increased level of dependence and immobility, gender, and greater number of care activities. The impact on work activities is related to age (66 years) gender, and home coexistence. The impact on social relationships is only related to kinship. Economic problems have no relationship to patient variables. The overload of CPs is related to health, work, financial, and social problems. CONCLUSIONS: The health, financial, occupational, and social impact of CPs relate to variables of the sick person and CP, and especially to the overload perceived by the CPs

[Factors related to work overload that affect health, financial, occupational, and social activities of the primary caregiver]. / Factores relacionados con la sobrecarga que intervienen sobre la salud, las actividades económicas, laborales y sociales de los cuidadores principales de pacientes crónicos.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the areas of the life of primary caregivers (CP) that may be affected by caring for a patient, as well as the CP variables: health, occupational, economic and social problems, as well as the role that CP overload can play. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 167 dependent chronic patients and their CPs. It included and analysis on the impact of caring about health, occupational, and economic problems, as well as maintaining social relationships in CP. A record was made of, demographic variables, age and gender, care, activities, time to care. For the dependent patients, the psychosocial typology of their disease, chronology, dependence, disability, and immobility was studied. The Zarit scale reduced by 8 items has been used for the study of the overload of CPs. RESULTS: More than two-thirds (68.8%) of CPs had health problems, 20.9% economic, 19.6% occupational, and 50.9% for positive family and social relationships. The health impact of CPs is related to psychosocial A typology, an increased level of dependence and immobility, gender, and greater number of care activities. The impact on work activities is related to age (66 years) gender, and home coexistence. The impact on social relationships is only related to kinship. Economic problems have no relationship to patient variables. The overload of CPs is related to health, work, financial, and social problems CONCLUSIONS: The health, financial, occupational, and social impact of CPs relate to variables of the sick person and CP, and especially to the overload perceived by the CPs.

Big data and visual analytics in anaesthesia and health care.

Advances in computer technology, patient monitoring systems, and electronic health record systems have enabled rapid accumulation of patient data in electronic form (i.e. big data). Organizations such as the Anesthesia Quality Institute and Multicenter Perioperative Outcomes Group have spearheaded large-scale efforts to collect anaesthesia big data for outcomes research and quality improvement. Analytics--the systematic use of data combined with quantitative and qualitative analysis to make decisions--can be applied to big data for quality and performance improvements, such as predictive risk assessment, clinical decision support, and resource management. Visual analytics is the science of analytical reasoning facilitated by interactive visual interfaces, and it can facilitate performance of cognitive activities involving big data. Ongoing integration of big data and analytics within anaesthesia and health care will increase demand for anaesthesia professionals who are well versed in both the medical and the information sciences.

Proyecto de fabricación de generadores de tecnecio - 99m / A project to manufacture technetium-99m generators

Introducción. El Tecnecio-99m (99mTc) es el radioisótopo más utilizado en medicina nuclear. Su uso en diagnóstico permite visualizar imágenes de estructuras anatómicas y brindar información sobre distintas funciones orgánicas. La gran demanda de este radionucleído se debe a sus favorables propiedades nucleares, a la gran cantidad de compuestos que se pueden marcar con él y al hecho de poder contar con generadores de 99mTc, lo que posibilita su obtención en lugares alejados de los centros de producción. Un generador de radioisótopos es un sistema mediante el cual un radionucleído padre genera por decaimiento radiactivo un radionucleído hijo de vida media más corta que la del padre. En el caso del generador de 99mTc, el radionucleído padre es el Molibdeno-99 (99Mo) cuya vida media es de 66 horas, mientras el radionucleído hijo, el 99mTc, tiene una vida media de 6 horas. Objetivo. La Comisión Chilena de Energía Nuclear (CCHEN) a través del Laboratorio de Producción de Radioisótopos realiza diariamente una producción de 99mTc, la cual entrega a Centros de Medicina Nuclear de la Región Metropolitana. Siin embargo, debido al método por el cual se obtiene, no es posible abastecer a los Centros de Medicina Nuclear de provincias. Conciente de esta necesidad, la CCHEN ha decidido poner en marcha el proyecto de fabricación de generadores de 99Mo - 99mTc, con lo cual nos situaremos en un breve plazo dentro del contexto de países que ya poseen esta tecnología. Materiales y Método. El método de fabricación se basa en la adsorción selectiva del 99Mo en óxido de aluminio (Al2O3 ), mientras el 99mTc que se genera por decaimiento radiactivo del 99Mo y que está débilmente unido a la alúmina, se puede eluir diariamente. Este tipo de generador es simple de operar y está diseñado en un sistema cerrado que permite mantener la esterilidad y proporcionar un producto de alta pureza. Resultados y Conclusión. La preparación de la alúmina, el acondicionamiento del Mo y las característica...

[Use of the Goldberg General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) to detect psychosocial problems in the family physician's office]. / Utilización del Cuestionario General de Salud de Goldberg (GHQ-28) en la detección de los problemas psicosociales en la consulta del médico de familia.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the usefulness of the 28-item Goldberg General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) in identifying psychosocial problems, and to determine how the questionnaire scores are related to stressful life events (SLE), use of health services, and individual variables (age, sex, employment status, socioeconomic group, and educational level). DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Almanjayar Health Center in the city of Granada, Southern Spain. PARTICIPANTS: 314 patients more than 18 years of age, selected by systematic sampling at an on-demand health center. MAIN MEASURES: Each patient completed the GHQ-28 during the course of a personal interview, and scores of 8 or higher were considered to indicate psychosocial problems. Score on the Social Readjustment Rating Scale of Holmes and Rahe (stressful life events during the previous year) was also recorded, as were socioeconomic group, educational level, employment status and use of services (number of visits to the doctor during the previous year). All variables were subjected to descriptive analysis and their associations with the GHQ-28 score were tested with the chi-squared test. Multivariate analysis was used to identify categories that showed an independent association with high scores on the GHQ-28. RESULTS: The variables associated with a greater likelihood of psychosocial problems were female sex (OR, 2.15; CI, 1.14-4.04) and high levels of stress (OR, 2.65; CI, 1.50-4.68). Both showed a statistically significant association with the GHQ-28 score after multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The GHQ-28 is a potentially useful instrument to detect psychosocial problems in the family physician's office, and can aid in the subsequent identification and qualitative evaluation of patients.

Psychology over the Internet: On-Line Experiences.

The "International Symposium on Psychology over the Internet: On-Line Experiences" was held in Lima, Peru, July 2003, at the 29th InterAmerican Congress of Psychology. The main topic was the advantages and disadvantages of using this technology in the applied field of psychology. The Internet has been considered a new alternative for teaching-learning processes (virtual classroom); vocational assessment; counseling and orientation (virtual psychological consultation); and intervention focused on specific health-related problems. These experiences of on-line psychological services and their conclusions are briefly described herein.

Supervision: a container-contained approach.

The authors illustrate an approach to the supervisory process as a learning experience for both supervisee and supervisor built on the containment of unconscious anxieties. It is argued that a core function of psychoanalytic supervision is to help contain the emotional turbulence and the unconscious anxieties arising and evolving in the two interacting domains of the analytic and the supervisory sessions. From this perspective, the analyst-patient interaction and that of the supervisee and supervisor can be understood as twin, tiered transformational arenas, the supervisory one being at the service of holding and grasping the roles the supervisee/analyst goes through as part of the analytic process. On the basis of detailed clinical material from a disturbed 7-year-old girl, the authors explore the interrelated issues and difficulties in containing anxieties and turbulence in both the analytic and the supervisory situation. When emotional containment is adequately handled, the supervision helps the understanding and development of the supervisee's use of his/her own personality as a treatment instrument, as advocated by Fleming and Benedek decades ago. The supervisory session thus furthers the resolution of clinical issues through symbol-formation, clinical sessions and supervision being twin domains for recording and understanding emotional evolution.

Proyecto San Francisco parte I: alta prevalencia de factores de riesgo cardiovascular en población adulta mayor de 15 años / The San Francisco project I: high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in adults over 15 years of age

Se seleccionó una cohorte para estudiar la evolución de la gradiente de factores de riesgo cardiovascular (FRCV) en una población chilena en transición epidemiológica. San Francisco es un pequeño centro urbano que cuenta con 10.802 personas sobre 15 años, una economía agroindustrial y una pirámide de transición hacia adultos jóvenes. Método: las unidades primarias de muestreo fueron 518 hogares tomados al azar de un universo de 1.718, según plano regulador de la comuna. Se censó a todos los habitantes sobre 15 años (n = 2.043) y se calculó una muestra de n = 873 personas a examinar, con nivel de confianza del 99 por ciento, poder del 95 por ciento, frecuencia esperada del 10 por ciento y error del 2 por ciento en 2 colas. Se logró un muestreo aliatorio de n = 893 personas entrevistadas en su hogar en 2 oportunidades y muestras sanguíneas que fueron tomadas y procesadas en consultorio local. Se realizó prueba binomial exacta con error alfa del 5 por ciento (IC 95 por ciento) para todas las prevalencias. Resultados: la prevalencia de la hipertensión arterial fue del 30,5 por ciento (IC 27,5-33,6); la obesidad definida por un índice de masa corporal >25 Kg/m2 fue del 61,3 por ciento (IC 58,9-64,4); la diabetes, diagnosticada por test de tolerancia a la glucosa alterado alcanzó a un 6,2 por ciento (IC 4,7-8,0); fumadores diarios fueron el 31,4 por ciento (IC 28,3-34,5); consumidores de alcohol con un test de bebedor problema positivo (EBBA+) un 22,4 por ciento (IC 19,7-25,3). El colesterol total >200 mg/dl estuvo presente en el 44,0 por ciento de la población (IC 37,4-50,8); el LDL >130 mg/dl afectó al 46,5 por ciento (IC 39,8-53,2), el HDL <35 mg/dl al 29,6 por ciento (IC 23,8-36,1) y los triglicéridos >200 mg/dl al 16,8 por ciento (IC 12,2-22,3): Conclusión: se encontraron elevadas prevalencias de FRCV en comparación con otros estudios realizados en comunidades chilenas en años previos. Si bien las tasas de mortalidad cardiovascular en Chile se mantienen estables en la última década, este estudio aporta evidencia contrapuesta en el sentido de una gradiente de FRCV en aumento acelerado, fenómeno de agregación que puede preceder al aumento de la morbilidad y mortalidad en un país en transición epidemiológica

[Validation of a functional social support scale for use in the family doctor's office]. / Validación de una escala de apoyo social funcional para su uso en la consulta del médico de familia.

OBJECTIVE: The present work seeks to validate the Duke-UNC questionnaire as modified by Broadhead, which is used to measure social support in its qualitative dimension. DESIGN: It is a transversal, prospective and observational study. LOCATION: The study has been done at the primary care level, corresponding to the basic health area of Cartuja (Granada). PATIENTS: The questionnaire was administered to 139 patients seen in the offices of the Cartuja Health Centre. 25 of them were male and 114 female, of an age ranging from 18 to 84. The subjects were selected on a systematic base of three by three with a random starting-point from among people over 18 years old visiting the office. INTERVENTIONS: To check the reliability and validity of the questionnaire, Pearson's, Edward's and Cronbach's alpha techniques were used. The factorial analysis was verified by the varimax rotation method. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: We have observed that the questionnaire correctly measures qualitative social support, it being appreciated that the correlation coefficients are high, as is the internal consistency of the scale. After the factorial analysis we also confirmed the existence of two components: Factor 1 which measures the confidential social support and Factor 2 which measures the affective social support. CONCLUSIONS: The Duke-UNC questionnaire reduced to 11 items is a fast and simple instrument for detecting the level of social support in its affective and confidential dimensions. Its use will allow us to discover situations of high social risk; permitting us in these cases to carry out the relevant support interventions.

[The evaluation of a program for the early diagnosis of cervix cancer at a health center (1981-1987)]. / Evaluación de un programa de diagnóstico precoz de cáncer de cérvix en un centro de salud (1981-1987).

The results of a program for the early diagnosis of cervical cancer (EDC) in a health center was evaluated for the period 1981-87. This activity was included in a general program of attention to women and was carried out by the primary care staff of the center. 915 women were evaluated, and 1,279 samples for cytology were collected. The achieved coverage was 11.56%. The most usual way of recruitment was through the family planning program. We detected that the group of women included in the program had risk factors predisposing to cervical cancer; however, this was not associated with a higher incidence of dysplasia. The referrals to a higher level of care were made in early disease stages, and this was the case in 38 women. It was considered that the continuation of the program in the health center is adequate. Recruitment should be increased and directed to the women with higher risk.