Ethics as ritual: smoothing over moments of dislocation in biomedicine

Applications of biomedical R&D currently imply substantial societal concerns. This paper explores, based on semi‐structured interviews with scientists in Norway, how biomedical researchers experience and tackle such concerns in their daily work. It shows how ritualised routine responses to dislocatory moments help maintain order in the daily work of the interviewed scientists; they do not address directly but instead smooth over concerns by a ritualised way of using ethics. This may foreclose substantive reflection and function as a stabiliser for ‘business as usual’. Overall, the current way of responding to concerns as described by the interviewees may contribute to a depoliticisation of important issues. The paper contributes to sociological work on ethics by linking it to recent discussions on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) and by the empirical research presented. The insights can also help improve science policies such as RRI.     

More than just a seat at the table: the power of youth voice in ending youth homelessness in the United States

ABSTRACT

Each year, over 600 youth under the age of 25 experience literal homelessness in Austin, Texas. Of these youth, 76% have a history of involvement with foster care or the juvenile justice system—far exceeding the rates of system involvement observed among homeless youth in other large communities in the United States (approximately 54%; Voices of Youth Count, 2017). Recently, Austin was selected by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development as one of ten communities nationwide to participate in the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP), a federal initiative designed to effectively end youth homelessness by 2020. Youth with lived experience are central players in the development and implementation of Austin's response to the youth homelessness crisis. A group of twelve of these youth (the “Austin Youth Collective to End Youth Homelessness,” or AYC) serve as key decision-making partners within the Austin YHDP team. Representatives of the AYC are deeply involved at every level of the community planning process, from the development of youth-centric housing options to system redesign efforts to ensure that youth do not exit the foster care or juvenile justice systems to homelessness. The article provides an overview of the development and contributions of the AYC—including their programmatic recommendations and advocacy work—as well as key recommendations for communities looking to leverage youth voice at the systems level.     

医院离退休干部参与社会治理现状

通过文献研究、问卷调查、专家访谈、现地调研等方法,分析医院离退休干部参与社会治理的现状及影响因素,探讨社区对离退休干部参与社会治理的需求,提出通过党建引领医院离退休干部参与社会治理的“1235”模式,并给出具体的操作路径,以期为推动医院离退休干部积极参与社会治理提供参考。     

论新时代医疗保险公法人治理体制的创新——基于多中心治理理论

本文基于多中心治理理论检视发现，现行的医疗保险运行机制存在基本医疗保险基金所有权与管理权分离、医疗保险政策改革只能"做加法"不能"做减法"，其他相关利益主体缺位、改革无法满足多方诉求，医保经办主体动力和能力不足等问题。这些问题不仅导致医疗保险制度的可持续性面临严峻挑战，而且与实现全民统一医疗保险制度的目标渐行渐远。因此，在新时代背景下，为了构建权责清晰、保障适度、可持续发展的医疗保险制度，本文提出创新医疗保险公法人治理体制，完善中国特色医疗保险治理体系，同时推进社会保险公法人治理机制的创新，促进政府、市场与社会之间的协同与配合，最终实现推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化的伟大目标。     

Fulfilling the Promise of Artificial Intelligence in the Health Sector: Let’s Get Real

ObjectivesThis study aimed to showcase the potential and key concerns and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) in the health sector, illustrating its application with current examples, and to provide policy guidance for the development, assessment, and adoption of AI technologies to advance policy objectives.MethodsNonsystematic scan and analysis of peer-reviewed and gray literature on AI in the health sector, focusing on key insights for policy and governance.ResultsThe application of AI in the health sector is currently in the early stages. Most applications have not been scaled beyond the research setting. The use in real-world clinical settings is especially nascent, with more evidence in public health, biomedical research, and “back office” administration. Deploying AI in the health sector carries risks and hazards that must be managed proactively by policy makers. For AI to produce positive health and policy outcomes, 5 key areas for policy are proposed, including health data governance, operationalizing AI principles, flexible regulation, skills among health workers and patients, and strategic public investment.ConclusionsAI is not a panacea, but a tool to address specific problems. Its successful development and adoption require data governance that ensures high-quality data are available and secure; relevant actors can access technical infrastructure and resources; regulatory frameworks promote trustworthy AI products; and health workers and patients have the information and skills to use AI products and services safely, effectively, and efficiently. All of this requires considerable investment and international collaboration.     

基于“冲任失调、伏邪致病”探讨女性复发性生殖器疱疹的辨治

基于"冲任失调、伏邪致病"理论探讨女性复发性生殖器疱疹的中医病因病机及治疗,因房事不洁而使外在毒邪藏于体内损伤气血阴阳,日久则冲任失调,其发病具有一定的特殊性和规律性,随月经气血阴阳周期性变化。治疗上,经前期以疏肝清热为主,月经期以行气通经为要,经后期治以益气养血为宜,使冲任调和,机体阴阳气血平衡,为冲任失调所致的皮肤性病诊治提供一定的借鉴意义。     

Do patients have a voice? The social stratification of health center governing boards

Context

To ensure community responsiveness, federally qualified health centres (FQHCs) in the United States are required to be governed by a patient majority. However, to the extent that these patient trustees resemble the typical low‐income patients served by FQHCs, status generalization theory suggests that they will be passed over for leadership positions within the board in favour of more prestigious individuals.

Methods

Using 4 years of data on health centre governing boards obtained from the Health Resources and Services Administration via a Freedom of Information Act Request, the likelihood of holding executive committee office is modelled as a function of trustee characteristics using Chamberlain''s conditional logistic regressions.

Results

The results indicate that representative patient trustees are significantly less likely than other trustees to hold a position on the executive committee or serve as board chair.

Conclusions

Given the power of the board leadership to set the agenda, the reduced likelihood of representative patient trustees serving in leadership positions may ultimately limit the representative voice given to patients, making FQHCs potentially less responsive to their communities. These findings also have important implications for other settings where engaging and empowering patients is sought.     

An examination of the potential added value of water safety plans to the United States national drinking water legislation

National and sub-national governments develop and enforce regulations to ensure the delivery of safe drinking water in the United States (US) and countries worldwide. However, periodic contamination events, waterborne endemic illness and outbreaks of waterborne disease still occur, illustrating that delivery of safe drinking water is not guaranteed. In this study, we examined the potential added value of a preventive risk management approach, specifically, water safety plans (WSPs), in the US in order to improve drinking water quality. We undertook a comparative analysis between US drinking water regulations and WSP steps to analyze the similarities and differences between them, and identify how WSPs might complement drinking water regulations in the US. Findings show that US drinking water regulations and WSP steps were aligned in the areas of describing the water supply system and defining monitoring and controls. However, gaps exist between US drinking water regulations and WSPs in the areas of team procedures and training, internal risk assessment and prioritization, and management procedures and plans. The study contributes to understanding both required and voluntary drinking water management practices in the US and how implementing water safety plans could benefit water systems to improve drinking water quality and human health.