A group comprised of several species of aquatic carnivores in different genera, in the family Otariidae. In comparison to FUR SEALS, they have shorter, less dense hair.

A genus of the subfamily SIGMODONTINAE consisting of 49 species. Two of these are widely used in medical research. They are P. leucopus, or the white-footed mouse, and P. maniculatus, or the deer mouse.

A viral infection of the brain caused by serotypes of California encephalitis virus (ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS, CALIFORNIA) transmitted to humans by the mosquito AEDES triseriatus. The majority of cases are caused by the LA CROSSE VIRUS. This condition is endemic to the midwestern United States and primarily affects children between 5-10 years of age. Clinical manifestations include FEVER; VOMITING; HEADACHE; and abdominal pain followed by SEIZURES, altered mentation, and focal neurologic deficits. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1996, Ch26, p13)

Persons living in the United States having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent.

Persons living in the United States of Mexican (MEXICAN AMERICANS), Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin. The concept does not include Brazilian Americans or Portuguese Americans.

Infections of the brain caused by arthropod-borne viruses (i.e., arboviruses) primarily from the families TOGAVIRIDAE; FLAVIVIRIDAE; BUNYAVIRIDAE; REOVIRIDAE; and RHABDOVIRIDAE. Life cycles of these viruses are characterized by ZOONOSES, with birds and lower mammals serving as intermediate hosts. The virus is transmitted to humans by the bite of mosquitoes (CULICIDAE) or TICKS. Clinical manifestations include fever, headache, alterations of mentation, focal neurologic deficits, and COMA. (From Clin Microbiol Rev 1994 Jan;7(1):89-116; Walton, Brain's Diseases of the Nervous System, 10th ed, p321)

The science dealing with the earth and its life, especially the description of land, sea, and air and the distribution of plant and animal life, including humanity and human industries with reference to the mutual relations of these elements. (From Webster, 3d ed)

Hospitals controlled by the county government.

Organized systems for providing comprehensive prepaid health care that have five basic attributes: (1) provide care in a defined geographic area; (2) provide or ensure delivery of an agreed-upon set of basic and supplemental health maintenance and treatment services; (3) provide care to a voluntarily enrolled group of persons; (4) require their enrollees to use the services of designated providers; and (5) receive reimbursement through a predetermined, fixed, periodic prepayment made by the enrollee without regard to the degree of services provided. (From Facts on File Dictionary of Health Care Management, 1988)

A plant genus of the family PAPAVERACEAE that contains benzo[c]phenanthridine alkaloids.

A group of people with a common cultural heritage that sets them apart from others in a variety of social relationships.

An aspect of personal behavior or lifestyle, environmental exposure, or inborn or inherited characteristic, which, on the basis of epidemiologic evidence, is known to be associated with a health-related condition considered important to prevent.

Chemicals used to destroy pests of any sort. The concept includes fungicides (FUNGICIDES, INDUSTRIAL); INSECTICIDES; RODENTICIDES; etc.

An infant during the first month after birth.

A functional system which includes the organisms of a natural community together with their environment. (McGraw Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)

Medical services for which no payment is received. Uncompensated care includes charity care and bad debts.

Individuals or groups with no or inadequate health insurance coverage. Those falling into this category usually comprise three primary groups: the medically indigent (MEDICAL INDIGENCY); those whose clinical condition makes them medically uninsurable; and the working uninsured.

Divisions of the year according to some regularly recurrent phenomena usually astronomical or climatic. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)

State plans prepared by the State Health Planning and Development Agencies which are made up from plans submitted by the Health Systems Agencies and subject to review and revision by the Statewide Health Coordinating Council.

A family of the order Rodentia which contains 49 genera. Some of the more common genera are MARMOTA, which includes the marmot and woodchuck; Sciurus, the gray squirrel, S. carolinensis, and the fox squirrel, S. niger; Tamias, the eastern and western chipmunk; and Tamiasciurus, the red squirrel. The flying squirrels, except the scaly-tailed Anomaluridae, also belong to this family.

The monitoring of the level of toxins, chemical pollutants, microbial contaminants, or other harmful substances in the environment (soil, air, and water), workplace, or in the bodies of people and animals present in that environment.

Infection with a fungus of the genus COCCIDIOIDES, endemic to the SOUTHWESTERN UNITED STATES. It is sometimes called valley fever but should not be confused with RIFT VALLEY FEVER. Infection is caused by inhalation of airborne, fungal particles known as arthroconidia, a form of FUNGAL SPORES. A primary form is an acute, benign, self-limited respiratory infection. A secondary form is a virulent, severe, chronic, progressive granulomatous disease with systemic involvement. It can be detected by use of COCCIDIOIDIN.

The relationships of groups of organisms as reflected by their genetic makeup.

Federal program, created by Public Law 89-97, Title XIX, a 1965 amendment to the Social Security Act, administered by the states, that provides health care benefits to indigent and medically indigent persons.

The exposure to potentially harmful chemical, physical, or biological agents in the environment or to environmental factors that may include ionizing radiation, pathogenic organisms, or toxic chemicals.

The process of leaving one's country to establish residence in a foreign country.

The science, art or practice of cultivating soil, producing crops, and raising livestock.

Groups of individuals whose putative ancestry is from native continental populations based on similarities in physical appearance.

A partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity that enters into an arrangement for the provision of services with persons who are licensed to practice medicine, osteopathy, and dentistry, and with other care personnel. Under an IPA arrangement, licensed professional persons provide services through the entity in accordance with a mutually accepted compensation arrangement, while retaining their private practices. Services under the IPA are marketed through a prepaid health plan. (From Facts on File Dictionary of Health Care Management, 1988)

Statistical interpretation and description of a population with reference to distribution, composition, or structure.

A plant genus of the family FAGACEAE that is a source of TANNINS. Do not confuse with Holly (ILEX).

Laws and regulations, pertaining to the field of medicine, proposed for enactment or enacted by a legislative body.

The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.

Systematic gathering of data for a particular purpose from various sources, including questionnaires, interviews, observation, existing records, and electronic devices. The process is usually preliminary to statistical analysis of the data.

A family of viruses, mainly arboviruses, consisting of a single strand of RNA. Virions are enveloped particles 90-120 nm diameter. The complete family contains over 300 members arranged in five genera: ORTHOBUNYAVIRUS; HANTAVIRUS; NAIROVIRUS; PHLEBOVIRUS; and TOSPOVIRUS.

Statistical models which describe the relationship between a qualitative dependent variable (that is, one which can take only certain discrete values, such as the presence or absence of a disease) and an independent variable. A common application is in epidemiology for estimating an individual's risk (probability of a disease) as a function of a given risk factor.

Sudden increase in the incidence of a disease. The concept includes EPIDEMICS and PANDEMICS.

Inhaling and exhaling the smoke of burning TOBACCO.

The number of new cases of a given disease during a given period in a specified population. It also is used for the rate at which new events occur in a defined population. It is differentiated from PREVALENCE, which refers to all cases, new or old, in the population at a given time.

Diseases of birds not considered poultry, therefore usually found in zoos, parks, and the wild. The concept is differentiated from POULTRY DISEASES which is for birds raised as a source of meat or eggs for human consumption, and usually found in barnyards, hatcheries, etc.

A plant genus in the LAURACEAE family. The tree, Persea americana Mill., is known for the Avocado fruit, the food of commerce.

Insurance providing coverage of medical, surgical, or hospital care in general or for which there is no specific heading.

A group of islands in Polynesia, in the north central Pacific Ocean, comprising eight major and 114 minor islands, largely volcanic and coral. Its capital is Honolulu. It was first reached by Polynesians about 500 A.D. It was discovered and named the Sandwich Islands in 1778 by Captain Cook. The islands were united under the rule of King Kamehameha 1795-1819 and requested annexation to the United States in 1893 when a provisional government was set up. Hawaii was established as a territory in 1900 and admitted as a state in 1959. The name is from the Polynesian Owhyhii, place of the gods, with reference to the two volcanoes Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, regarded as the abode of the gods. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p493 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p2330)

The total number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. It is differentiated from INCIDENCE, which refers to the number of new cases in the population at a given time.

A genus of mosquitoes (CULICIDAE) commonly found in tropical regions. Species of this genus are vectors for ST. LOUIS ENCEPHALITIS as well as many other diseases of man and domestic and wild animals.

The degree to which individuals are inhibited or facilitated in their ability to gain entry to and to receive care and services from the health care system. Factors influencing this ability include geographic, architectural, transportational, and financial considerations, among others.

Social and economic factors that characterize the individual or group within the social structure.

The suborder of aquatic CARNIVORA comprising the WALRUSES; FUR SEALS; SEA LIONS; and EARLESS SEALS. They have fusiform bodies with very short tails and are found on all sea coasts. The offspring are born on land.

The interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale, between different countries or between populations within the same country. It includes trade (the buying, selling, or exchanging of commodities, whether wholesale or retail) and business (the purchase and sale of goods to make a profit). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, p411, p2005 & p283)

Decisions for determining and guiding present and future objectives from among alternatives.

Elements of limited time intervals, contributing to particular results or situations.

The salinated water of OCEANS AND SEAS that provides habitat for marine organisms.

Ongoing scrutiny of a population (general population, study population, target population, etc.), generally using methods distinguished by their practicability, uniformity, and frequently their rapidity, rather than by complete accuracy.

The religion stemming from the life, teachings, and death of Jesus Christ: the religion that believes in God as the Father Almighty who works redemptively through the Holy Spirit for men's salvation and that affirms Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior who proclaimed to man the gospel of salvation. (From Webster, 3d ed)

A plant genus in the LAURACEAE family. The tree, Umbellularia californica (Hook. & Arn.) Nutt., is known for aromatic leaves used in SPICES having a similar flavor to LAURUS.

Any substance in the air which could, if present in high enough concentration, harm humans, animals, vegetation or material. Substances include GASES; PARTICULATE MATTER; and volatile ORGANIC CHEMICALS.

Individuals whose ancestral origins are in the continent of Europe.

Age as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or the effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from AGING, a physiological process, and TIME FACTORS which refers only to the passage of time.

Organized efforts to insure obedience to the laws of a community.

Nitric acid (HNO3). A colorless liquid that is used in the manufacture of inorganic and organic nitrates and nitro compounds for fertilizers, dye intermediates, explosives, and many different organic chemicals. Continued exposure to vapor may cause chronic bronchitis; chemical pneumonitis may occur. (From Merck Index, 11th ed)

A method of payment for health services in which an individual or institutional provider is paid a fixed, per capita amount without regard to the actual number or nature of services provided to each patient.

Studies in which subsets of a defined population are identified. These groups may or may not be exposed to factors hypothesized to influence the probability of the occurrence of a particular disease or other outcome. Cohorts are defined populations which, as a whole, are followed in an attempt to determine distinguishing subgroup characteristics.

Non-native organisms brought into a region, habitat, or ECOSYSTEM by human activity.

The pattern of any process, or the interrelationship of phenomena, which affects growth or change within a population.

Persons living in the United States of Mexican descent.

Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.

Process of cultural change in which one group or members of a group assimilate various cultural patterns from another.

A systematic collection of factual data pertaining to health and disease in a human population within a given geographic area.

An area of water mostly surrounded by land, usually smaller than a gulf, and affording access to the sea.

A form of arboviral encephalitis (which primarily affects horses) endemic to western and central regions of NORTH AMERICA. The causative organism (ENCEPHALOMYELITIS VIRUS, WESTERN EQUINE) may be transferred to humans via the bite of mosquitoes (CULEX tarsalis and others). Clinical manifestations include headache and influenza-like symptoms followed by alterations in mentation, SEIZURES, and COMA. DEATH occurs in a minority of cases. Survivors may recover fully or be left with residual neurologic dysfunction, including PARKINSONISM, POSTENCEPHALITIC. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1996, Ch26, pp8-9)

Studies in which the presence or absence of disease or other health-related variables are determined in each member of the study population or in a representative sample at one particular time. This contrasts with LONGITUDINAL STUDIES which are followed over a period of time.

A multistage process that includes cloning, physical mapping, subcloning, determination of the DNA SEQUENCE, and information analysis.

Elements of residence that characterize a population. They are applicable in determining need for and utilization of health services.

A situation in which the level of living of an individual, family, or group is below the standard of the community. It is often related to a specific income level.

A course or method of action selected, usually by a government, from among alternatives to guide and determine present and future decisions.

Studies designed to assess the efficacy of programs. They may include the evaluation of cost-effectiveness, the extent to which objectives are met, or impact.

Generally refers to the amount of protection available and the kind of loss which would be paid for under an insurance contract with an insurer. (Slee & Slee, Health Care Terms, 2d ed)

Woody, usually tall, perennial higher plants (Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, and some Pterophyta) having usually a main stem and numerous branches.

Economic aspects related to the management and operation of a hospital.

Warm-blooded VERTEBRATES possessing FEATHERS and belonging to the class Aves.

A genus of marine mussels in the family MYTILIDAE, class BIVALVIA. The species MYTILUS EDULIS is the highly edible common mussel.

Health insurance plans for employees, and generally including their dependents, usually on a cost-sharing basis with the employer paying a percentage of the premium.

Genotypic differences observed among individuals in a population.

The ratio of two odds. The exposure-odds ratio for case control data is the ratio of the odds in favor of exposure among cases to the odds in favor of exposure among noncases. The disease-odds ratio for a cohort or cross section is the ratio of the odds in favor of disease among the exposed to the odds in favor of disease among the unexposed. The prevalence-odds ratio refers to an odds ratio derived cross-sectionally from studies of prevalent cases.

A plant genus of the family TAXODIACEAE known for including some of the tallest trees.

Collection, analysis, and interpretation of data about the frequency, distribution, and consequences of disease or health conditions, for use in the planning, implementing, and evaluating public health programs.

The teaching staff and members of the administrative staff having academic rank in an educational institution.

The protection, preservation, restoration, and rational use of all resources in the total environment.

The geographic designation for states bordering on or located in the Pacific Ocean. The states so designated are Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington. (U.S. Geologic Survey telephone communication)

The condition in which individuals are financially unable to access adequate medical care without depriving themselves and their dependents of food, clothing, shelter, and other essentials of living.

Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.

Health insurance plans intended to reduce unnecessary health care costs through a variety of mechanisms, including: economic incentives for physicians and patients to select less costly forms of care; programs for reviewing the medical necessity of specific services; increased beneficiary cost sharing; controls on inpatient admissions and lengths of stay; the establishment of cost-sharing incentives for outpatient surgery; selective contracting with health care providers; and the intensive management of high-cost health care cases. The programs may be provided in a variety of settings, such as HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATIONS and PREFERRED PROVIDER ORGANIZATIONS.

Animals considered to be wild or feral or not adapted for domestic use. It does not include wild animals in zoos for which ANIMALS, ZOO is available.

Governmental levies on property, inheritance, gifts, etc.

The longterm manifestations of WEATHER. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)

Health insurance providing benefits to cover or partly cover hospital expenses.

A group of ALPHAVIRUS INFECTIONS which affect horses and man, transmitted via the bites of mosquitoes. Disorders in this category are endemic to regions of South America and North America. In humans, clinical manifestations vary with the type of infection, and range from a mild influenza-like syndrome to a fulminant encephalitis. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1996, Ch26, pp8-10)

Statistical measures of utilization and other aspects of the provision of health care services including hospitalization and ambulatory care.

The qualitative or quantitative estimation of the likelihood of adverse effects that may result from exposure to specified health hazards or from the absence of beneficial influences. (Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1988)

The systems and processes involved in the establishment, support, management, and operation of registers, e.g., disease registers.

Arthropods, other than insects and arachnids, which transmit infective organisms from one host to another or from an inanimate reservoir to an animate host.

The unstable triatomic form of oxygen, O3. It is a powerful oxidant that is produced for various chemical and industrial uses. Its production is also catalyzed in the ATMOSPHERE by ULTRAVIOLET RAY irradiation of oxygen or other ozone precursors such as VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS and NITROGEN OXIDES. About 90% of the ozone in the atmosphere exists in the stratosphere (STRATOSPHERIC OZONE).

A subtype of INFLUENZA A VIRUS with the surface proteins hemagglutinin 1 and neuraminidase 1. The H1N1 subtype was responsible for the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918.

Programs in which participation is required.

Conversations with an individual or individuals held in order to obtain information about their background and other personal biographical data, their attitudes and opinions, etc. It includes school admission or job interviews.

Small-arms weapons, including handguns, pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, etc.

A species of ALPHAVIRUS that is the etiologic agent of encephalomyelitis in humans and equines in the United States, southern Canada, and parts of South America.

Studies which start with the identification of persons with a disease of interest and a control (comparison, referent) group without the disease. The relationship of an attribute to the disease is examined by comparing diseased and non-diseased persons with regard to the frequency or levels of the attribute in each group.

A mosquito-borne viral illness caused by the WEST NILE VIRUS, a FLAVIVIRUS and endemic to regions of Africa, Asia, and Europe. Common clinical features include HEADACHE; FEVER; maculopapular rash; gastrointestinal symptoms; and lymphadenopathy. MENINGITIS; ENCEPHALITIS; and MYELITIS may also occur. The disease may occasionally be fatal or leave survivors with residual neurologic deficits. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1996, Ch26, p13; Lancet 1998 Sep 5;352(9130):767-71)

Number of individuals in a population relative to space.

Criteria to determine eligibility of patients for medical care programs and services.

The flow of water in enviromental bodies of water such as rivers, oceans, water supplies, aquariums, etc. It includes currents, tides, and waves.

A strategy for purchasing health care in a manner which will obtain maximum value for the price for the purchasers of the health care and the recipients. The concept was developed primarily by Alain Enthoven of Stanford University and promulgated by the Jackson Hole Group. The strategy depends on sponsors for groups of the population to be insured. The sponsor, in some cases a health alliance, acts as an intermediary between the group and competing provider groups (accountable health plans). The competition is price-based among annual premiums for a defined, standardized benefit package. (From Slee and Slee, Health Care Reform Terms, 1993)

Maleness or femaleness as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from SEX CHARACTERISTICS, anatomical or physiological manifestations of sex, and from SEX DISTRIBUTION, the number of males and females in given circumstances.

Places for cultivation and harvesting of fish, particularly in sea waters. (from McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)

Compounds that contain two halogenated benzene rings linked via an OXYGEN atom. Many polybrominated diphenyl ethers are used as FLAME RETARDANTS.

Encouraging consumer behaviors most likely to optimize health potentials (physical and psychosocial) through health information, preventive programs, and access to medical care.

People who leave their place of residence in one country and settle in a different country.

The immature stage in the life cycle of those orders of insects characterized by gradual metamorphosis, in which the young resemble the imago in general form of body, including compound eyes and external wings; also the 8-legged stage of mites and ticks that follows the first moult.

The aggregate business enterprise of agriculture, manufacture, and distribution related to tobacco and tobacco-derived products.

Diseases of rodents of the order RODENTIA. This term includes diseases of Sciuridae (squirrels), Geomyidae (gophers), Heteromyidae (pouched mice), Castoridae (beavers), Cricetidae (rats and mice), Muridae (Old World rats and mice), Erethizontidae (porcupines), and Caviidae (guinea pigs).

Individuals whose ancestral origins are in the islands of the central and South Pacific, including Micronesia, Melanesia, Polynesia, and traditionally Australasia.

Institutions with an organized medical staff which provide medical care to patients.

A set of techniques used when variation in several variables has to be studied simultaneously. In statistics, multivariate analysis is interpreted as any analytic method that allows simultaneous study of two or more dependent variables.

Those factors, such as language or sociocultural relationships, which interfere in the meaningful interpretation and transmission of ideas between individuals or groups.

Activities concerned with governmental policies, functions, etc.

Official records of individual deaths including the cause of death certified by a physician, and any other required identifying information.

Procedures for finding the mathematical function which best describes the relationship between a dependent variable and one or more independent variables. In linear regression (see LINEAR MODELS) the relationship is constrained to be a straight line and LEAST-SQUARES ANALYSIS is used to determine the best fit. In logistic regression (see LOGISTIC MODELS) the dependent variable is qualitative rather than continuously variable and LIKELIHOOD FUNCTIONS are used to find the best relationship. In multiple regression, the dependent variable is considered to depend on more than a single independent variable.

The effort of two or more parties to secure the business of a third party by offering, usually under fair or equitable rules of business practice, the most favorable terms.

Branch of medicine concerned with the prevention and control of disease and disability, and the promotion of physical and mental health of the population on the international, national, state, or municipal level.

A family of the order DIPTERA that comprises the mosquitoes. The larval stages are aquatic, and the adults can be recognized by the characteristic WINGS, ANIMAL venation, the scales along the wing veins, and the long proboscis. Many species are of particular medical importance.

Agencies established under PL93-641 to coordinate, conduct, and implement state health planning activities. Two primary responsibilities are the preparation of an annual State Health Plan and giving assistance to the Statewide Health Coordinating Council.

Financing of medical care provided to public assistance recipients.

A mass of organic or inorganic solid fragmented material, or the solid fragment itself, that comes from the weathering of rock and is carried by, suspended in, or dropped by air, water, or ice. It refers also to a mass that is accumulated by any other natural agent and that forms in layers on the earth's surface, such as sand, gravel, silt, mud, fill, or loess. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed, p1689)

The presence of contaminants or pollutant substances in the air (AIR POLLUTANTS) that interfere with human health or welfare, or produce other harmful environmental effects. The substances may include GASES; PARTICULATE MATTER; or volatile ORGANIC CHEMICALS.

Laws and regulations, pertaining to the field of nursing, proposed for enactment by a legislative body.

Organizations which assume the financial responsibility for the risks of policyholders.

The presence of bacteria, viruses, and fungi in water. This term is not restricted to pathogenic organisms.

The species Canis latrans in the family CANIDAE, a smaller relative of WOLVES. It is found in the Western hemisphere from Costa Rica to Alaska.

Persons living in the United States having origins in any of the black groups of Africa.

A mitosporic fungal genus which causes COCCIDIOIDOMYCOSIS.

Descriptions of specific amino acid, carbohydrate, or nucleotide sequences which have appeared in the published literature and/or are deposited in and maintained by databanks such as GENBANK, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), National Biomedical Research Foundation (NBRF), or other sequence repositories.

Any group of three or more full-time physicians organized in a legally recognized entity for the provision of health care services, sharing space, equipment, personnel and records for both patient care and business management, and who have a predetermined arrangement for the distribution of income.

The science or philosophy of law. Also, the application of the principles of law and justice to health and medicine.

All deaths reported in a given population.

Schools which offer training in the area of health.

Computer systems capable of assembling, storing, manipulating, and displaying geographically referenced information, i.e. data identified according to their locations.

A genus of destructive parasitic OOMYCETES in the family Peronosporaceae, order Peronosporales, affecting numerous fruit, vegetable, and other crops. Differentiation of zoospores usually takes place in the sporangium and no vesicle is formed. It was previously considered a fungus.

Coexistence of numerous distinct ethnic, racial, religious, or cultural groups within one social unit, organization, or population. (From American Heritage Dictionary, 2d college ed., 1982, p955)

A species of FLAVIVIRUS, one of the Japanese encephalitis virus group (ENCEPHALITIS VIRUSES, JAPANESE). It can infect birds and mammals. In humans, it is seen most frequently in Africa, Asia, and Europe presenting as a silent infection or undifferentiated fever (WEST NILE FEVER). The virus appeared in North America for the first time in 1999. It is transmitted mainly by CULEX spp mosquitoes which feed primarily on birds, but it can also be carried by the Asian Tiger mosquito, AEDES albopictus, which feeds mainly on mammals.

Economic aspects of the field of medicine, the medical profession, and health care. It includes the economic and financial impact of disease in general on the patient, the physician, society, or government.

The confinement of a patient in a hospital.

Diseases of domestic and wild horses of the species Equus caballus.

Disorders related to substance abuse.

The sequence of transfers of matter and energy from organism to organism in the form of FOOD. Food chains intertwine locally into a food web because most organisms consume more than one type of animal or plant. PLANTS, which convert SOLAR ENERGY to food by PHOTOSYNTHESIS, are the primary food source. In a predator chain, a plant-eating animal is eaten by a larger animal. In a parasite chain, a smaller organism consumes part of a larger host and may itself be parasitized by smaller organisms. In a saprophytic chain, microorganisms live on dead organic matter.

Living facilities for humans.

A plant genus of the family CUPRESSACEAE. Cypress ordinarily refers to this but also forms part of the name of plants in other genera.

Differences in access to or availability of medical facilities and services.

Gases, fumes, vapors, and odors escaping from the cylinders of a gasoline or diesel internal-combustion engine. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed & Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Innovation and improvement of the health care system by reappraisal, amendment of services, and removal of faults and abuses in providing and distributing health services to patients. It includes a re-alignment of health services and health insurance to maximum demographic elements (the unemployed, indigent, uninsured, elderly, inner cities, rural areas) with reference to coverage, hospitalization, pricing and cost containment, insurers' and employers' costs, pre-existing medical conditions, prescribed drugs, equipment, and services.

Large members of the FALCONIFORMES order of birds, family Accipitridae, most especially the genera Aquila, Haliaeetus, Harpia, and Circaetus. They are characterized by their powerful talons, which carry long, curved, pointed claws and by their opposable hindtoe.

The group in which legal authority is vested for the control of health-related institutions and organizations.

Educational institutions.

Smallest political subdivisions within a country at which general governmental functions are carried-out.

The buckthorn plant family, of the order Rhamnales, includes some species with edible fruits and some that are medicinal.

Individuals licensed to practice medicine.

A violation of the criminal law, i.e., a breach of the conduct code specifically sanctioned by the state, which through its administrative agencies prosecutes offenders and imposes and administers punishments. The concept includes unacceptable actions whether prosecuted or going unpunished.

The restriction of a characteristic behavior, anatomical structure or physical system, such as immune response; metabolic response, or gene or gene variant to the members of one species. It refers to that property which differentiates one species from another but it is also used for phylogenetic levels higher or lower than the species.

The variety of all native living organisms and their various forms and interrelationships.

The behavior patterns associated with or characteristic of a father.

A subfamily of the family MURIDAE comprised of 69 genera. New World mice and rats are included in this subfamily.

Chemicals used in agriculture. These include pesticides, fumigants, fertilizers, plant hormones, steroids, antibiotics, mycotoxins, etc.

Payments or services provided under stated circumstances under the terms of an insurance policy. In prepayment programs, benefits are the services the programs will provide at defined locations and to the extent needed.

The level of governmental organization and function below that of the national or country-wide government.

Learning to respond verbally to a verbal stimulus cue.

A stratum of people with similar position and prestige; includes social stratification. Social class is measured by criteria such as education, occupation, and income.

Environments or habitats at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems and truly aquatic systems making them different from each yet highly dependent on both. Adaptations to low soil oxygen characterize many wetland species.

Large, robust forms of brown algae (PHAEOPHYCEAE) in the order Laminariales. They are a major component of the lower intertidal and sublittoral zones on rocky coasts in temperate and polar waters. Kelp, a kind of SEAWEED, usually refers to species in the genera LAMINARIA or MACROCYSTIS, but the term may also be used for species in FUCUS or Nereocystis.

Poisoning from ingestion of mushrooms, primarily from, but not restricted to, toxic varieties.

An animal or plant species in danger of extinction. Causes can include human activity, changing climate, or change in predator/prey ratios.

Water containing no significant amounts of salts, such as water from RIVERS and LAKES.

The contamination of indoor air.

A serotype of the species California encephalitis virus (ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS, CALIFORNIA), in the genus ORTHOBUNYAVIRUS, causing human MENINGOENCEPHALITIS. This is the agent most responsible for California encephalitis (ENCEPHALITIS, CALIFORNIA), the most prevalent mosquito-borne disease recognized in the United States.

A viral encephalitis caused by the St. Louis encephalitis virus (ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS, ST. LOUIS), a FLAVIVIRUS. It is transmitted to humans and other vertebrates primarily by mosquitoes of the genus CULEX. The primary animal vectors are wild birds and the disorder is endemic to the midwestern and southeastern United States. Infections may be limited to an influenza-like illness or present as an ASEPTIC MENINGITIS or ENCEPHALITIS. Clinical manifestations of the encephalitic presentation may include SEIZURES, lethargy, MYOCLONUS, focal neurologic signs, COMA, and DEATH. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p750)

Education centers authorized by the Comprehensive Health Manpower Training Act, 1971, for the training of health personnel in areas where health needs are the greatest. May be used for centers other than those established by the United States act.

Decisions, usually developed by government policymakers, for determining present and future objectives pertaining to the health care system.