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Pigoga JL, Joiner AP, Chowa P, Luong J, Mhlanga M, Reynolds TA, Wallis LA. Evaluating capacity at three government referral hospital emergency units in the kingdom of Eswatini using the WHO Hospital Emergency Unit Assessment Tool. BMC Emerg Med 2020; 20:33. [PMID: 32375637 PMCID: PMC7201969 DOI: 10.1186/s12873-020-00327-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Accepted: 04/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Kingdom of Eswatini, a lower-middle income nation of 1.45 million in southern Africa, has recently identified emergency care as a key strategy to respond to the national disease burden. We aimed to evaluate the current capacity of hospital emergency care areas using the WHO Hospital Emergency Unit Assessment Tool (HEAT) at government referral hospitals in Eswatini. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study of three government referral hospital emergency care areas using HEAT in May 2018. This standardised tool assists healthcare facilities to assess the emergency care delivery capacity in facilities and support in identifying gaps and targeting interventions to strengthen care delivery within emergency care areas. Senior-level emergency care area employees, including senior medical officers and nurse matrons, were interviewed using the HEAT. RESULTS All sites provided some level of emergency care 24 h a day, 7 days a week, though most had multiple entry points for emergency care. Only one facility had a dedicated area for receiving emergencies and a dedicated resuscitation area; two had triage areas. Facilities had limited capacity to perform signal functions (life-saving procedures that require both skills and resources). Commonly reported barriers included training deficits and lack of access to supplies, medications, and equipment. Sites also lacked formal clinical management and process protocols (such as triage and clinical protocols). CONCLUSIONS The HEAT highlighted strengths and weaknesses of emergency care delivery within hospitals in Eswatini and identified specific causes of these system and service gaps. In order to improve emergency care outcomes, multiple interventions are needed, including training opportunities, improvement in supply chains, and implementation of clinical and process protocols for emergency care areas. We hope that these findings will allow hospital administrators and planners to develop effective change management plans.
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Affiliation(s)
- J L Pigoga
- Division of Emergency Medicine, University of Cape Town, Anzio Road, Observatory, Cape Town, 7935, South Africa.
| | - A P Joiner
- Division of Emergency Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - P Chowa
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - J Luong
- Department of Emergency Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - M Mhlanga
- Emergency Preparedness and Response, Eswatini Ministry of Health, Mbabane, Eswatini
| | - T A Reynolds
- Department for Management of NCDs, Disability, Violence and Injury Prevention, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - L A Wallis
- Division of Emergency Medicine, University of Cape Town, Anzio Road, Observatory, Cape Town, 7935, South Africa
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Vázquez VF, Luong J, Bueno M, Terán F, Paje SE. Assessment of an action against environmental noise: Acoustic durability of a pavement surface with crumb rubber. Sci Total Environ 2016; 542:223-230. [PMID: 26519582 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.10.102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2015] [Revised: 10/13/2015] [Accepted: 10/20/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Environmental noise is a worldwide problem that has an adverse effect in the quality of life of urban population. Some work has shown that there is a correlation between environmental noise and health issues as sleep disturbance or annoyance. This study presents the time evolution of a test track fabricated with an asphalt mixture with 20% of crumb rubber by weight of bitumen, added by the wet process. A complete surface characterization has been performed by determining tire/pavement sound levels, road texture profiles, in-situ dynamic stiffness and sound absorption of compacted and extracted sample cores. Two measurement campaigns were performed: just after mixture laying and after 3 years in service. This study confirms that the use of crumb rubber as a modifier of bituminous binders (CRMB) can improve the pavement characteristics: gap-graded mixtures with crumb rubber can be used in the action plans as urban rehabilitation measure to fight noise pollution. However, this noise reduction seems to decrease with age at a rate of approximately 0.15 dB(A) per year.
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Affiliation(s)
- V F Vázquez
- University of Castilla-La Mancha, Laboratory of Acoustics Applied to Civil Engineering, Avda. Camilo José Cela s/n, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - J Luong
- University of Liège, Environmental Sciences and Technologies Dept., Passage des Déportés 2, 5030, Gembloux, Belgium
| | - M Bueno
- Empa, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Material Science and Technology, Road Engineering Laboratory, Ueberladstr. 129, CH-8600, Duebendorf, Switzerland
| | - F Terán
- University of Castilla-La Mancha, Laboratory of Acoustics Applied to Civil Engineering, Avda. Camilo José Cela s/n, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - S E Paje
- University of Castilla-La Mancha, Laboratory of Acoustics Applied to Civil Engineering, Avda. Camilo José Cela s/n, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain.
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Luong J, Gras R, Gras K, Shellie R. Piston-cylinder based micro liquid–liquid extraction with GC–qMS for trace analysis of targeted chlorinated organic compounds in water. CAN J CHEM 2015. [DOI: 10.1139/cjc-2015-0307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
A fast and reliable approach for the measurement of sub parts-per-billion levels of targeted chlorinated compounds like tetrachloroethane, hexachloroethane, hexachlorobutadiene, pentachlorobenzene, and hexachlorobenzene in various water matrices such as waste water is described. The method employed a novel piston-cylinder-based micro liquid–liquid extraction technique using hexane as an extraction solvent. The device, known commercially as the MIXXOR, substantially accelerates extraction time by a factor of more than 100 times and reduces solvent consumption by a factor of 25 times when compared with the solvent extraction technique using wrist-action mechanical agitation. A recently introduced 6% cyanopropylphenyl –94% dimethylpolysiloxane capillary column offering a high degree of inertness was used for the separation of the analytes. A quadrupole mass spectrometer equipped with a triple-axis detector was also employed to enhance the instrument detection limit. With this technique, a complete separation for the analytes in water can be conducted in less than 10 min using a three-port SilFlow planar microfluidic device for back-flushing. Repeatability of retention times for all compounds were found to be less than 0.04% (n = 10). The compounds cited can be analyzed from 1 ng/mL to 10 μg/mL, with a detection limit and correlation coefficient of at least 0.5 ng/mL and 0.999, respectively. A relative precision of less than 1.2% relative standard deviation (RSD) (n = 20) at the 50 ng/mL level, with analyte recovery of greater than 99% (n = 3) from 10 ng/mL to 10 μg/mL, was obtained.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. Luong
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, AB T8L 2P4, Canada
- Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
| | - R. Gras
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, AB T8L 2P4, Canada
- Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
| | - K. Gras
- University of Alberta, 116 Street and 85 Avenue, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
| | - R.A. Shellie
- Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
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Gras K, Luong J, Gras R, Cortes H, Shellie R. Determination of furfurals in Manuka honey using piston-cylinder liquid–liquid extraction and gas chromatography. J Chromatogr A 2014; 1362:43-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2014.08.055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2014] [Revised: 08/14/2014] [Accepted: 08/14/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Luong J, Gras R, Cortes H, Shellie R. Determination of trace ethylene glycol in industrial solvents and lubricants using phenyl boronic acid derivatization and multidimensional gas chromatography. Anal Chim Acta 2013; 805:101-6. [DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2013.10.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2013] [Revised: 10/08/2013] [Accepted: 10/11/2013] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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Luong J, Gras R, Shellie R, Cortes H. Tandem sulfur chemiluminescence and flame ionization detection with planar microfluidic devices for the characterization of sulfur compounds in hydrocarbon matrices. J Chromatogr A 2013; 1297:231-5. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2013.04.080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2013] [Revised: 04/24/2013] [Accepted: 04/25/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Luong J, Gras R, Cortes HJ, Shellie RA. Characterization of Phenol and Alkyl Phenols in Organic Matrixes with Monoethylene Glycol Extraction and Multidimensional Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry. Anal Chem 2013; 85:6219-23. [DOI: 10.1021/ac400981z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J. Luong
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, T8L 2P4, Canada
| | - R. Gras
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, T8L 2P4, Canada
| | - H. J. Cortes
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
- HJ Cortes Consulting LLC, Midland, Michigan 48642, United States
| | - R. A. Shellie
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
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Luong J, Gras R, Cortes HJ, Shellie RA. Temperature-Programmable Resistively Heated Micromachined Gas Chromatography and Differential Mobility Spectrometry Detection for the Determination of Non-Sulfur Odorants in Natural Gas. Anal Chem 2013; 85:3369-73. [DOI: 10.1021/ac400067j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J. Luong
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta T8L 2P4,
Canada
| | - R. Gras
- Dow Chemical Canada ULC, Highway 15, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta T8L 2P4,
Canada
| | - H. J. Cortes
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
- HJ Cortes Consulting LLC, Midland, Michigan 48642, United States
| | - R. A. Shellie
- Australian Centre for Research
on Separation Science (ACROSS), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 75, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
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Luong J, Gras R, Cortes H, Shellie R. Multidimensional gas chromatography for the characterization of permanent gases and light hydrocarbons in catalytic cracking process. J Chromatogr A 2013; 1271:185-91. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2012.11.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2012] [Revised: 11/12/2012] [Accepted: 11/12/2012] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Luong J, Nazarov E, Gras R, Shellie RA, Cortes HJ. Resistively heated temperature programmable silicon micromachined gas chromatography with differential mobility spectrometry. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s12127-012-0105-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Luong J, Shellie R, Cortes H, Gras R, Hayward T. Ultra-trace level analysis of morpholine, cyclohexylamine, and diethylaminoethanol in steam condensate by gas chromatography with multi-mode inlet, and flame ionization detection. J Chromatogr A 2012; 1229:223-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2012.01.041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2011] [Revised: 01/16/2012] [Accepted: 01/16/2012] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Luong J, Cai H, Gras R, Curvers J. Developments in Ultra-Fast Temperature Programming with Silicon Micromachined Gas Chromatography: Performance and Limitations. J Chromatogr Sci 2012; 50:245-52. [DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/bmr052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
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Gras R, Luong J, Hawryluk M, Monagle M. Analysis of part-per-billion level of arsine and phosphine in light hydrocarbons by capillary flow technology and dielectric barrier discharge detector. J Chromatogr A 2010; 1217:348-52. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2009.11.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2009] [Revised: 11/05/2009] [Accepted: 11/16/2009] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Gras R, Luong J, Carter V, Sieben L, Cortes H. Practical method for the measurement of Alkyl mercaptans in natural gas by multi-dimensional gas chromatography, capillary flow technology, and flame ionization detection. J Chromatogr A 2009; 1216:2776-82. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2008.09.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2008] [Revised: 08/27/2008] [Accepted: 09/01/2008] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Gras R, Luong J, Eckerle P, Shearer R. The Determination of Tertiary Dodecyl Mercaptan by Low Thermal Mass Gas Chromatography--Dual Plasma Sulfur Chemiluminescence Detection. J Chromatogr Sci 2008; 46:665-70. [DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/46.8.665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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Abstract
Geo-referenced close proximity rolling noise and sound absorption measurements are used for acoustical characterization of asphalt concrete surfaces in an urban environment. A close proximity noise map of streets with low speed limits is presented for a reference speed of 50 km/h. Different pavements and pavement conditions, common in urban streets, are analyzed: dense and semidense asphalt concrete, with Spanish denomination D-8 and S-12, respectively, and on the other hand, dense pavement at the end of its service life (D-8(*)). From the acoustics point of view, the most favorable surface, by more than 4 dB(A) compared with the S-12 mix, is the smoothest surface, i.e., the D-8 mix, even though it presents a minor absorption coefficient in normal incidence. Noise levels from dense surfaces (D-8) increase significantly over time, principally due to the appearance of surface defects such as cracks and ruts. Longitudinal variability of the close proximity tire/pavement noise emission and surface homogeneity are also analyzed.
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Affiliation(s)
- S E Paje
- Laboratory of Acoustics Applied to Civil Engineering (LA2IC), Department of Applied Physics-ETSI Caminos and ES Informática, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain.
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Luong J, Gras R, Yang G, Sieben L, Cortes H. Capillary Flow Technology with Multi-Dimensional Gas Chromatography for Trace Analysis of Oxygenated Compounds in Complex Hydrocarbon Matrices. J Chromatogr Sci 2007; 45:664-70. [DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/45.10.664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
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Gras R, Luong J, Shearer R. A Unified Approach for the Measurement of Individual or Total Volatile Organic Sulfur Compounds in Hydrocarbon Matrices by Dual-Plasma Chemiluminescence Detector and Low Thermal Mass Gas Chromatography. J Chromatogr Sci 2007; 45:671-6. [DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/45.10.671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
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Sutherland F, Gras R, Luong J, Cortes H, Curvers J. Determination of Ultra Trace Levels of 1,2-Dichloroethane in Air by Sample Enrichment Micromachined Gas Chromatography-Differential Mobility Detection. J Chromatogr Sci 2007; 45:486-91. [DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/45.8.486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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Carrat F, Lao H, Salle V, Luong J, Lajaunie C, Wackernagel H. E4-3 - Un modèle « Small world » pour l’évaluation des stratégies de contrôle d’une pandémie grippale. Rev Epidemiol Sante Publique 2006. [DOI: 10.1016/s0398-7620(06)76871-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
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Sun K, Winniford W, Griffith J, Colura K, Green S, Pursch M, Luong J. Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography for Fast Screening of Wash Oils. J Chromatogr Sci 2003; 41:506-18. [PMID: 14629788 DOI: 10.1093/chromsci/41.10.506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Fast screening of wash oils is demonstrated using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GCxGC). Wash oils are used in ethylene production plants to minimize compressor fouling. The composition of a wash oil determines its effectiveness in solubilizing heavy hydrocarbons. In particular, the relative amount of 1- and 2-ring aromatics is important. The presence of oxygenates is undesirable because of adverse effects to the process. It is shown that GCxGC is well suited for this application. Species in wash oils are separated and grouped into three bands: a nonpolar aliphatics band, 1- and 2-ring aromatics band, and polyaromatics band. For a given polar secondary column, the spacing between bands in the second dimension can be adjusted in a broad range by selecting a primary column and an oven-temperature-programming rate. Integration of GCxGC peaks is evaluated using a standard GC integration program and a new GCxGC integration program. Consistent results are obtained using both programs for well-separated GCxGC peaks with relative differences for individual peak ranging from 0.04% to 1.6%. Peak responses are integrated by the GCxGC software, and the relative amounts of aromatics content and aliphatics content are estimated by peak response percent with relative standard deviations ranging from 0.15% to 2.8% (n = 3).
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Affiliation(s)
- K Sun
- The Dow Chemical Company, Freeport, TX 77531, USA
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Luong J. Which catheter first? Am J Nurs 1993; 93:19. [PMID: 8470696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
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Gavora J, Geson D, Luong J, Storer A, Woodley J. Biotechnology research and applications. Anal Chim Acta 1989. [DOI: 10.1016/s0003-2670(00)84119-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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