Dimensions of vulnerability in emergency nurses' narratives. The saving of strangers is the essence of emergency nursing, and nurses are constantly confronted with the existential, physical, emotional, economic, and social vulnerability of their patients. In this commentary, the author uses data from an ethnographic study conducted in two hospital EDs to illustrate tensions between two types of vulnerability as they are reflected in emergency nurses' narratives. One type of vulnerability is equated with susceptibility to particular harmful agents, conditions, or events at particular times and is considered something to be avoided or resisted. Another type of vulnerability is the ever-present, common condition of all sentient beings and a condition of nurses' access to understanding patients' experiences.
ROC curves estimation when covariates affect the verification process.
Biometrics 56, pp. An ROC curve is commonly used to measure the accuracy of a medical test. Bias can occur when estimating an ROC curve if, for example, only some of the tested patients are selected for disease verification and if analysis is restricted only to the verified cases. This is known as verification bias. The authors address the problem of correction for verification bias in estimation of an ROC curve when the verification process and efficacy of the diagnostic test depend on covariates.