Dalia De Santis, Jacopo Zenzeri, Maura Casadio, Lorenzo Masia, Valentina Squeri and Pietro Morasso
The working hypothesis, on which this paper is built, is that it is advantageous to look at protocols of robot rehabilitation in the general context of human-robot interaction in…
Abstract
Purpose
The working hypothesis, on which this paper is built, is that it is advantageous to look at protocols of robot rehabilitation in the general context of human-robot interaction in haptic dyads. The purpose of this paper is to propose a new method to detect and evaluate an index of active participation (AC index), underlying the performance of robot-assisted movements. This is important for avoiding the slacking phenomenon that affects robot therapy.
Design/methodology/approach
The evaluation of the AC index is based on a novel technique of assistance which does not use constant or elastic forces but trains of small force impulses, with amplitude adapted to the level of impairment and a frequency of 2 Hz, which is suggested by recent results in the field of intermittent motor control. A preliminary feasibility test of the proposed method was carried out during a haptic reaching task in the absence of visual feedback, for a group of five stroke patients and an equal group of healthy subjects.
Findings
The AC index appears to be stable and sensitive to training in both populations of subjects.
Originality/value
The main original element of this study is the proposal of the new AC index of voluntary control associated with the new method of pulsed haptic interaction.
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Clara M. Escolano Hortelano, Félix Gutiérrez Rodero, Javier Ena Muñoz, Concepción Benito Santaleocadia, Mar Masiá Canuto, Alberto Martín Hidalgo, Antonia Mora Rufete and Ildefonso Hernández Aguado
Aims to assess the impact of a day‐care center (DCC) on hospital bed usage by HIV‐infected patients. Reviews the medical records of 710 hospital admissions of HIV‐infected…
Abstract
Aims to assess the impact of a day‐care center (DCC) on hospital bed usage by HIV‐infected patients. Reviews the medical records of 710 hospital admissions of HIV‐infected patients admitted to two Spanish hospitals, one of them with a DCC, over a three‐year period. The proportion of unnecessary admissions was significantly higher in the hospital without a DCC. The rate of hospital admissions among patients who were admitted to hospital was also greater in the hospital without a DCC, as well as the rate of admissions among patients on antiretroviral drugs. Concludes that the availability of a DCC improves the appropriateness of hospital admissions and decreases the number of hospitalizations in HIV‐infected patients.
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The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of political instability on rural credit in Lima between 1835 and 1865. In particular, it explores the effects of wars on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of political instability on rural credit in Lima between 1835 and 1865. In particular, it explores the effects of wars on interest rates for the agricultural sector.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper relies on primary sources for the study of the early credit market of Lima. In particular, the study relies on a sample of more than 800 notarized loans for 1835–1865, collected from the National Archives of Peru, to determine the effect of wars on the cost of credit.
Findings
The evidence shows that wars increased interest rates on rural loans and that the impact of wars on the cost of credit was greater when the State lacked fiscal resources. Political instability made funding more costly for landlords and farmers, especially in the late 1830s and early 1840s.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few historical studies on the role of wars on rural credit in Latin America. It contributes to our understanding of the linkages between political instability and financial development.