Organizational policy and other factors associated with emergency medical technician seat belt use

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to determine factors associated with seat belt usage among Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). METHODS: As part of biennial re-registration paperwork, nationally registered EMTs completed a survey on the safety and health risks facing Emergency Medical Services (EMS) providers. Respondents were asked to describe their seat belt use while in the front seats of an ambulance. They were categorized as "high" in seat belt use if it had been more than a year since they had not worn their seat belt or "low" in seat belt use if they had not worn their seat belt at least once within the past 12 months. A logistic regression model was fit to estimate the association between seat belt use, organizational seat belt policy, type of EMS organization worked for, EMT certification level, and the size of community where EMS work is performed. RESULTS: Of the 41,823 EMTs that re-registered in 2003, surveys were received from 29,575 (70.7%). A significant interaction between organizational seat belt policy and type of EMS organization was found to exist. Participants reporting no organizational seat belt policy had lower odds of seat belt usage when compared to individuals that do have a seat belt policy. Odds Ratios ranged from 0.20 (95% CI 0.10-0.40) for military organizations to 0.59 (95% CI 0.38-0.93) for private EMS organizations. Paramedics and those working in rural areas also had lower odds of seat belt use. CONCLUSION: Several factors were found to be associated with seat belt usage among EMTs while in the front compartment of an ambulance. However, it appears that only one, organizational policy, is a modifiable characteristic.     

河源市企业环境事故应急预案的评估与管理现状分析

结合应急预案编制相关要求及评估工作实际,分析了我市企业环境事故应急预案评估、备案及管理工作中存在的问题,并提出了建议和措施,以期为企业应急预案的评估和管理工作提供参考。     

Post-fire seeding on Wyoming big sagebrush ecological sites: regression analyses of seeded nonnative and native species densities

Since the mid-1980s, sagebrush rangelands in the Great Basin of the United States have experienced more frequent and larger wildfires. These fires affect livestock forage, the sagebrush/grasses/forbs mosaic that is important for many wildlife species (e.g., the greater sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)), post-fire flammability and fire frequency. When a sagebrush, especially a Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis (Beetle & A. Young)), dominated area largely devoid of herbaceous perennials burns, it often transitions to an annual dominated and highly flammable plant community that thereafter excludes sagebrush and native perennials. Considerable effort is devoted to revegetating rangeland following fire, but to date there has been very little analysis of the factors that lead to the success of this revegetation. This paper utilizes a revegetation monitoring dataset to examine the densities of three key types of vegetation, specifically nonnative seeded grasses, nonnative seeded forbs, and native Wyoming big sagebrush, at several points in time following seeding. We find that unlike forbs, increasing the seeding rates for grasses does not appear to increase their density (at least for the sites and seeding rates we examined). Also, seeding Wyoming big sagebrush increases its density with time since fire. Seeding of grasses and forbs is less successful at locations that were dominated primarily by annual grasses (cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.)), and devoid of shrubs, prior to wildfire. This supports the hypothesis of a "closing window of opportunity" for seeding at locations that burned sagebrush for the first time in recent history.     

Human Influence and Classical Biogeographic Predictors of Rare Species Occurrence

Biogeographic theory predicts that rare species occur more often in larger, less‐isolated habitat patches and suggests that patch size and connectivity are positive predictors of patch quality for conservation. However, in areas substantially modified by humans, rare species may be relegated to the most isolated patches. We used data from plant surveys of 81 meadow patches in the Georgia Basin of Canada and the United States to show that presence of threatened and endangered plants was positively predicted for patches that were isolated on small islands surrounded by ocean and for patches that were isolated by surrounding forest. Neither patch size nor connectivity were positive predictors of rare species occurrence. Thus, in our study area, human influence, presumably due to disturbance or introduction of competitive non‐native species, appears to have overwhelmed classical predictors of rare species distribution, such that greater patch isolation appeared to favor presence of rare species. We suggest conservation planners consider the potential advantages of protecting geographically isolated patches in human‐modified landscapes because such patches may represent the only habitats in which rare species are likely to persist. Influencia Humana y Predictores Biogeográficos Clásicos de la Ocurrencia de Especies Raras     

化工事故应急救援仿真演练系统的实施探讨

阐述了化工事故应急救援仿真的必要性及其国内外研究进展;提出整个系统的框架并设计系统开发过程的模型;分析了基于高层体系结构(HIA)的仿真系统的开发要点,给出参考开发工具,从而为整个系统开发提供思路.     

地震救援行动的影响因素分析

从探讨救援行动的概念和响应过程出发,在分析国内外相关资料的基础上,结合我国的实际情况,分析了影响地震救援行动的方面和因素,以及它们对救援行动可能产生的影响,以期为地震救援的理论和实践提供有益的补充。     

对由制定抗震救灾工作预案引起地震误传的平息与启示

本文概述了在制定和部署抗震救灾工作预案时，所引起地震误传事件的经过、对社会造成的影响，以及采取的对策和所汲取的教训。     

公路运输化学事故应急救援体系研究

以动态源的定义为基础 ,结合危化品公路运输特殊性 ,阐述了危化品在公路运输过程中发生化学事故后应急救援的原则、工作特点与基本要求 ;提出化学事故应急救援中的基本任务是控制危险源 ,抢救受害人员 ,指导并组织群众疏散、自救和做好事故现场清理洗消工作 ,消除危害后果 ;提出公路运输化学事故应急救援预案系统建设的总体目标是 ,在应用ITS智能交通系统对动态源精确定位的基础上 ,建立公路运输化学事故应急救援预案动态库及应急救援组织保障系统和应急救援技术支持系统 ,一旦事故发生 ,能够做到尽快有效处理 ,最大限度地减小或消除事故损失。     

重大事故应急救援法律法规体系建设

重大事故应急救援法律法规体系作为生产安全应急救援体系建设的重要内容之一 ,在重特大事故多发的今天 ,已显得尤为重要。笔者结合国内外重大事故应急救援立法的现状 ,论述加强我国应急救援法律法规体系建设的必要性 ;提出重大应急救援法律法规体系建设要从法律、行政法规及部门规章、地方性法规及规章3个方面进行 ;同时提出建立联席会议制度、应急预案编制审核和备案制度、报告与信息发布制度、应急救援的分级响应制度、应急救援演习制度、应急救援资金补偿制度、应急救援的奖惩制度等急救援工作制度体系。最后 ,还强调建立重大事故应急救援体系对于提高政府对国家危机的管理能力有着深远的影响和意义。     

石油化工企业事故应急救援预案现状及改进建议

石油化工行业是一个高危行业 ,具有易燃易爆、高温高压、有毒有害的特点 ,发生事故的概率高 ,且后果严重。制定事故应急救援预案是风险控制措施的一个重要组成部分 ,可以有效地防止事故的扩大 ,减轻事故造成的财产和生命损失。笔者主要探讨应急救援管理层面上的问题 ;阐述了我国政府和有关部门在应急救援管理方面的有关规定 ,石化行业的应急救援体系 ;指出了目前事故应急救援预案存在的不完善、不规范 ,应急装备不完备和缺乏社会救援联动机制等问题 ;建议企业和政府联合制定应急预案 :形成企业、地方政府和国家三方事故应急救援联动机制 ,实现统一指挥 ,资源共享 ,协调作战 ,发挥整体应急救援能力。