[Pneumococcal meningitis in children in Iceland - case report and summary]

An eleven month old girl was referred to the pediatric emergency department at Landspitali Hospital due to fever and lethargy. On examination she was acutely ill with fluctuating level of conciousness. She deteriorated quickly after arrival at the emergency department and was diagnosed with pneumococcal meningitis. In the past year several cases of bacterial meningitis have been diagnosed with Streptococcus pneumoniae as the most common pathogen. The disease causing serotypes have been serotypes that were not in the vaccine that was used in iceland and the Icelandic health authorities have decided to change the vaccination programme accordingly.

Targeting Medicare consumers. Managed care providers can make inroads by understanding preference and cost-sensitivity issues

The authors' conjoint study provided valuable information on the preferences of the hugh Medicare-eligible and soon-to-be-eligible markets. Leading the list were hospitalization coverage, skilled nursing facilities, and out-of-area coverage. The task of defining choice sets was made easier and more meaningful by selecting the top six attributes for each respondent. Asking respondents to rank levels within each attribute and assessing the importance of the various levels provided a more robust estimate of consumer preferences. Using an innovative price-sensitivity method preserved the integrity of the data. The method minimized respondent fatigue and enabled the authors to gather price-sensitivity data from respondents who were not actually paying for their health services. Respondents preferred Supplemental F and Medicare products even though they placed more value on the qualities of alternative health care products. This suggests that managed care providers need to change consumer perceptions about their products.

The ecology of rape victimization: a case study of Buffalo, New York

Official crime report data gathered from the Buffalo Police Department for the year 1975 were used to analyze variations in risk of rape victimization. The ecological structuring of routine activities and the victimogenic factors possessed by rape victims were examined to account for observed differences in risk. The results showed that rape victimization is associated with the routine activities of victims in that women who are highly mobile (working women, students, and younger women in general) are at a much greater risk than women who are less mobile. The risk of rape varies with respect to location within the city, and nonwhite females are victimized more than their white female counterparts. Differential risk of rape victimization was accounted for by the routine activities of victims. Rape victimization requires the convergence in space and time of likely offenders, suitable targets, and the absence of capable guardians for preventing rape.