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Abstract In recent years, healthcare spending has risen and become a burden on governments especially in the US. One of the reasons for this increase is hospital readmissions. Decreasing the number of readmissions can reduce the healthcare spending. The first part of this paper examines state-of-the-art applications that aim to reduce the number of readmissions at hospitals. We categorize these applications into three different categories and highlight not only their benefits, but also their weaknesses. Moreover, we describe the limitations and challenges faced by these systems to demonstrate the possible future research paths. The second part of this paper presents novel algorithms to reduce the number of readmissions by applying the concept of personalization and actionable patterns. First, we start by extracting all possible procedure paths (course of treatments) for a given procedure. Then, we cluster patients according to the similarities in their diagnoses in order to increase the predictability of the next procedure. Finally, we present a novel algorithm that provides recommendations (actionable knowledge) to the physicians to put patients on a treatment path that would result in optimal reduction of the number of readmissions on average case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an approach to the control of continuous systems through the use of symbolic models describing the system behavior only at a finite number of points in the state space. These symbolic models can be seen as abstract representations of the continuous dynamics enabling the use of algorithmic controller design methods. We identify a class of linear control systems for which the loss of information incurred by working with symbolic subsystems can be compensated by feedback. We also show how to transform symbolic controllers designed for a symbolic subsystem mb controllers for the original system. The resulting controllers combine symbolic controller dynamics with continuous feedback control laws and can thus be seen as hybrid systems. Furthermore, if the symbolic controller already accounts for software/hardware requirements, the hybrid controller is guaranteed to enforce the desired specifications by construction thereby reducing the need for formal verification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article deconstructs approach to written subtraction applied in the primary national strategy's (PNS') "guidance paper" Calculation (DIES, 2007) in the U.S. The approach to subtraction is divided into three stages. The first stage provides recommendations which parallel those outlined for additions. The second stage suggests a backward step while the third step involved an expanded method.