Annual Inspection Research Articles

Sustained alcohol service refusal rates to underage patrons in nightlife setting: 25-year follow-up of a Swedish alcohol prevention program

In 1996, a multicomponent alcohol prevention intervention was launched and later institutionalized in Stockholm. This study examines the long-term effects of the program on compliance with the legal minimum age limit for alcohol service at licensed premises. The intervention comprised community mobilization and collaboration, training, and enforcement aimed at preventing alcohol service to underage (<18years) or obviously intoxicated patrons. Six cross-sectional studies were conducted between 1996 and 2022 in Stockholm using pseudo-underage mystery shoppers attempting to enter licensed premises and order alcoholic beverages. The primary outcome was refusal of entry to the premises or refusal of alcohol service. Throughout the study period, regular collaboration meetings were held, the number of annual inspections and trained staff increased, and the number of sanctions varied. The refusal rate of alcohol service to pseudo-underage mystery shoppers rose from 54.8% in 1996 (baseline) to 59.1% in 1998, 67.6% in 2001, 88.3% in 2007, 91.3% in 2013, and 79.6% in 2022. Compared to the reference year 1996, all rates from 2001 to 2022 showed significant increases in the odds of refusal. The multicomponent alcohol prevention program has been successfully sustained through collaboration and community mobilization, training, and enforcement. This success is evidenced by consistently high refusal rates for alcohol sales to underage customers over an extended period.

Operation Experience of Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel at Ukrainian NPPs

To ensure compatibility with the more robust design of TVSA manufactured by TVEL JSC, a modification of the Westinghouse FA, referred to as RWFA, was announced in 2013, which was designed to be more robust. Since 2015, RWFAs has been in pilot operation and since 2019 in commercial operation in Ukraine. The supply of Westinghouse FAs to Ukraine was under constant supervision and integrity control at all stages of operation and after its end. From the very beginning of the implementation of the WFAs, specialists of SE "NNEGC "Energoatom" and Westinghouse Company with the scientific support of NFC STE NSC KIPT carried out the annual inspections of the fuel assemblies. Based on the inspection results of 86 WFAs/RWFAs after 1-3 years of operation, it was concluded that the obtained values of the parameters characterizing the integrity of WFAs/RWFAs did not exceed the limits set during the FA design and safety substantiation of the core loading where those FAs were operated. All FAs that were subjected to scheduled inspections were loaded in the subsequent fuel cycles.

Evaluation of monthly variations in electrometer calibration coefficients using a charge generator for radiation therapy

Electrometers are important devices that are part of the standard dosimetry system. Therefore, we evaluated the variation of electrometer calibration coefficients (kelec) over 1 year in this study. We investigated two types of electrometers: a rate mode and an integrate mode. Each electrometer was connected to a charge generator, a constant charge was applied, and kelec was determined by measuring the current. The current measurements were repeated once a month. For electrometers with multiple ranges, measurements were taken at low and medium ranges. Almost all kelec measurements agreed within 0.2% of the initial measurements. However, the low range of the electrometer with an integrate mode showed seasonal variation, with a variation greater than 0.2%. This study shows that electrometers may exhibit errors that cannot be detected through annual inspections. The importance of quality assurance using a charge generator at one’s own institution was demonstrated.

Temporal patterns of food control outputs and outcomes and effects of targeted control interventions on compliance in food service establishments in Finland

Food control inspections are an essential control measure to ensure compliance, and it is important to understand possible patterns within inspections and their outcomes when developing food control. In this study, we analysed food control inspection reports (n = 86 223) concerning Finnish food service establishments from 2016 to 2021 to reveal temporal patterns in food control outputs and outcomes and the possible reasons behind them, and to evaluate the effects of targeted control interventions on inspection grades. The analyses revealed that the proportions of non-compliances were high throughout the study period in several inspected issues, such as temperature management (7.1–8.1%) and cleanliness (4.4–5.3%). Moreover, the inspection grades improved in only one of sixteen inspection subsections, but in five subsections the proportion of non-compliances increased significantly within the study period (linear regression analysis) and in seven subsections the inspection grades were inferior during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic years. In addition to the long-term variation in the level of non-compliances, we observed seasonal variation, with higher proportions of non-compliances in summer compared to other times. This study also showed that targeted food control interventions may influence both the number of inspections and the level of observed non-compliances. We also observed that almost half of the annual pre-planned inspections were made in the proximity of the inspection time in the previous year (44.6% within 30 days), decreasing the surprise factor of the inspections. These results can be used in developing the effectiveness of food control.

Compliance towards the Malaysian Laws on Poisons and Sale of Drugs: A Retrospective Observational Study in the state of Sarawak

Abstract Introduction: Compliance with the laws and regulations on the sale and supply of medicine ensures that it is conducted safely and professionally. Objectives: This study identify the compliance rate of community pharmacists and general practitioners in the state of Sarawak towards the Malaysian Laws on Poisons and Sale of Drugs and review the effect enforcement actions taken by the Sarawak Pharmacy Enforcement Branch. Methods: A cross sectional study where the data were extracted retrospectively from the annual inspection reports on community pharmacists and general practitioners conducted by the Sarawak Pharmacy Enforcement Branch from 2016 to 2020. Data were extracted using a self-developed data collection tool by trained enforcement officers. Overall, 50 criteria were examined but 24 more criteria were also examined for community pharmacists. Results: The compliance rate of community pharmacists has improved slightly from 58.6% in 2016 to 61.1% in 2020. Meanwhile, the compliance rate of general practitioners improved drastically, from 35.9% in 2016 to 71.2% in 2020. The recording provision on the supply of substances containing Codeine, Dextromethorphan, Ephedrine, and Pseudoephedrine (12.3%-24.1%) and of the Prescription Book (7.7%-27.6%) were the most common non-compliance recorded for all the 5 years among community pharmacists and general practitioners, respectively. Enforcement action “issuance of warning letters” found to induced major (79.6%) improvement in the compliance rate. Conclusion: The compliance rate of community pharmacists and general practitioners has improved throughout the years. The highest non-compliance rate was towards the recording provision on the supply of medicine. Constant assessment of compliance rate as well as the effectiveness of enforcement actions must be done regularly. Keywords: Community pharmacists, General Practitioners, Malaysian Laws on Poisons and Sale of Drugs, Compliance

Community Functions of Schools and Municipal Support of Schools on the Continuum of the Rural Periphery – Town

Abstract The article compares the community functions of schools and the support to schools from the municipality representatives and community depending on the location of the school – in peripheral or semi-peripheral rural areas, rural small towns, outer suburbs and also in towns, i.e., at various distances from the town. It is based on controlled interviews with school headmasters and mayors of the respective municipalities and on the collection of information from annual school reports and school inspection reports. A total of 57 schools of two districts in the south-west of Czechia were evaluated. The assumption that complete rural schools in peripheries have the greatest community functions was confirmed; but complete rural schools in semi-peripheries also received similar assessment. However, a fully functioning rural "community school" was not found in the case study area. Schools in towns show weak community functions, because community functions in towns are provided by other institutions and facilities.

Estimating Hazard Function through Reliability Function and Empirical Methods

In this research, the reliability functions are applied to estimate the hazard function of four used car components (tires, brakes, lights, engine), which are inspected by aperiodic vehicles inspection (PVI) established in Erbil city, as a specialized company that conducts the annual technical inspection of vehicles to detect the failure component, that either require repair or replace it with a new one. For our purpose, the data about the failure components of a sample of size (50000) cars are obtained from the Erbil traffic directorate, which are annually inspected for 11 years (2010 – 2020) by a (PVI) company. From the available data the reliability function, hazard function, and probability density function of failure time of each component are found by the non-parametric method and the estimated Rayleigh distribution since the failure rates of the components are the linear functions of time, also the comparison between their reliability values have made by the mean absolute error method.

Diabetic Foot Ulcers: A Review of Debridement Techniques.

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) are a prevalent complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and lead to significant morbidity and mortality. Patients with DM have a lifetime risk of DFUs as high as 34%. The pathogenesis of DFUs is multifactorial, and the most common underlying causes are poor glycemic control, peripheral neuropathy, peripheral vascular disease, foot deformity, and poor foot care. Diabetic lower-extremity complications are also a significant burden in terms of healthcare costs. In the United States alone, the direct cost of diabetic foot care has been estimated to be $8,659 per patient, with total annual medical costs for managing diabetic foot disease ranging from $9 to $13 billion. Given the risk of amputation and poor wound healing, the fast, accurate diagnosis and treatment of DFUs are critical. Measures to prevent DFUs include glycemic control and annual foot inspections. For patients with DFUs, off-loading and local wound care are critical for wound healing. Debridement is the standard of care for DFU wounds, and several techniques exist. In this review, we discuss the current practices of diabetic wound care, different methods of debridement and their practical use in DFUs, and novel debridement approaches with the potential for improving wound-healing outcomes.

BRIDGING THE PRACTICE-RESEARCH DIVIDE: BUILDING SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIPS WITH STATE GOVERNMENT

Abstract State governments collect data on LTSS but frequently lack resources to analyze it. Simultaneously, researchers often struggle to translate research to policy and practice realms. This symposium will elucidate strategies and challenges in building successful relationships between researchers and state government to enhance LTSS. Paper 1 explores the growing trend of states developing Multisector Plans for Aging (MPA) and opportunities for researchers to ensure that these state-led planning resources utilize evidence to transform and coordinate aging services across the state. This paper will discuss how states use data to promote accountability and monitor implementation of MPA initiatives. Paper 2 describes the development of a statewide data dashboard for Virginia that can be used by state and local agencies to leverage funding and improve programming. This paper will describe the process of developing and eliciting input from a stakeholder task force and the dashboard design. Paper 3 explores efforts in Minnesota to capitalize on existing data to inform policy advocacy and regulatory reform in assisted living. Data from annual survey inspections is utilized to explore trends, target education, and recommend policy changes. Paper 4 focuses on building relationships with Maryland’s Adult Protective Service division to engage collaboratively in logic modelling and continuous quality improvement. Strategies for translating existing administrative data into research ready formats and primary data collection methods will be discussed. Symposium participants will have an opportunity to discuss effective strategies for engaging state government in research.

An efficient approach to monitoring pine wilt disease severity based on random sampling plots and UAV imagery

The mapping of forest pests and diseases using remote sensing presents a critical challenge in forest management and conservation. Forestry professionals have shown particular concern about the rapid decline of pine trees caused by pine wilt disease, conducting annual inspections to monitor its impact. However, achieving a balance between large-scale monitoring areas and the identification of individual trees poses a challenging issue. To tackle this issue, we employed a random sampling plan and utilized an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to capture high-resolution images on two separate occasions. This methodology facilitated the comparison of temporal variations in tree health. We applied three object detection algorithms (YOLOv5, Faster-RCNN, CenterNet) to identify diseased trees in the images and introduced an enhanced vision of YOLOv5 for better performance. The improved YOLOv5 demonstrated higher precision of average precision (AP) (0.8806, 0.9004) compared to the other algorithms across two datasets. The improved YOLOv5 generated predictions that identified the topographic regions most severely affected by pine wilt nematode infestation. Geographically, the highest disease incidence was observed at altitudes between 200 and 299 m, slopes ranging from 10 to 15 degrees, and locations facing a sunny slope direction. The primary source of infection is pre-existing diseased trees that are not properly controlled. Additionally, the density of infected trees contributes to the spread, with the most severe outbreaks occurring in densely clustered over large areas. By aggregating the cumulative sampling data, we derived an estimation of the total tree mortality in the two towns. This study introduces an effective monitoring approach for pine wilt disease at the district level by integrating a random sampling protocol, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) strategies, and a deep learning algorithm. Our approach can assist forest managers in timely and cost-effective detection and control of pine wilt disease.

Analysis of Energy Laboratory Safety Management in China Based on the System-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes/System Theoretic Process Analysis STAMP/STPA Model

Laboratory safety in colleges and universities has received wider attention as a critical annual inspection by the Ministry of Education. The laboratory environment is complex and diverse, with many hazard factors. To effectively prevent the occurrence of laboratory emergencies in universities, the STAMP/STPA model is used to analyze the safety of energy laboratory safety management in a resource-based university. Between 2021 and 2022, we carried out laboratory safety inspection and field observation for a mining resource university in China, and identified 16 unsafe control actions in the field of energy laboratory safety management in the university, and identified ten critical causal factors leading to unsafe control actions. Combining the actual situation of the mining resource university, the short-term countermeasures and long-term countermeasures to improve laboratory safety management are proposed to guarantee the university’s laboratory safety management. Moreover, the research results have suggestions for the construction and development of laboratory safety management at similar universities.

Does the threat of enforcement of financial regulations affect the cost of equity in weak institutional environments?

Using the imposition of annual on-site inspections of publicly listed firms by local China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) offices as a quasi-natural experiment, we examine how the threat of potential enforcement of financial regulations affects firms' implied cost of equity in weak institutional environments. In a staggered difference-in-differences (DID) framework, we show that compared with firms subject to the lottery of prospective on-site inspections, firms that are exempt from on-site inspections for three consecutive years display an average increase of 210 basis points in the cost of equity. This effect is more pronounced for firms with regulatory penalty records, firms domiciled in jurisdictions with more actions imposed on listed firms as a result of on-site inspections in the past, firms located closer to their respective local CSRC offices and state-owned firms (SOEs). Further analysis suggests that the exemption from on-site inspections increases firms' cost of equity through the channels of increased tunnelling activities from controlling shareholders, reduced financial reporting quality and more severe information asymmetry faced by external investors. Thus, the valuation of exempt firms decreases. Our findings suggest that in weak institutional environments, the threat of financial regulators' enforcement ex ante increases firm value by reducing external investors' estimation of firms’ long-term risks.

Reverse Engineering of Maintenance Budget Allocation Using Decision Tree Analysis for Data-Driven Highway Network Management

One important aspect of network-level highway management is the rational distribution of the maintenance budget to the necessary assets. However, the decision making underlying budget allocation is often unclear, making it difficult to determine whether the budget is being allocated effectively. Based on the PDCA (plan–do–check–action) approach to maintenance management, this research proposes the application of decision tree algorithm to reverse engineer the factors affecting maintenance budget allocation. Annual inspection and budget data for 3000 km of highway network were analyzed using the CART algorithm with two conceptualizations of budget allocation. Both frameworks revealed that the budget allocation was related to factors other than pavement conditions, and it was concluded that maintenance planning was primarily based on subjective considerations, rather than inspection data. This study demonstrates the combination of PDCA cycle and decision tree analysis as a valuable technique for evaluating and improving decision making in maintenance budget allocation and highway network management.

Longitudinal assessment of the impact of aging on wastage, productivity and welfare of ewes

Retention of aging ewes is a strategy producers may use to maintain or increase flock size. Older ewes can have a higher risk of mortality and health issues, but these may be minimised with early intervention and culling. This retrospective study examined the incidence and causes of mortality and culling in a flock of Merino ewes as they aged from 4.5 to 5.5 until 9.5 to 10.5 years. The annual rate of ewe mortality ranged from 6.2% to 9.9%, with lambing complications being the major source of reported loss. Annual culling rates ranged from 1.6% to 42.8%, the larger rates reflecting opportunistic replacement with younger ewes rather than essential culling to maintain welfare and productivity. The major reasons for culling were low condition score, worn or missing teeth or faulty udders. The incidence of other faults was low. Only 18.3% of ewes remained when aged 9.5-10.5 years and these were fertile (89% pregnant) with a high proportion of multiple fetuses (52%) in their final year, although fleece weight had declined. Younger ewes born in 2004/2005 tended to have lower annual mortality rates than the aged ewes, but 8%-12% were still culled annually. It is concluded that an annual inspection pre-joining of all ewes and preventative culling for health issues is necessary to minimise any increase in mortality and risk to ewe welfare from retaining aging ewes. More frequent inspection will be required as potential health issues develop during the year, as these may not be evident pre-joining.

Point Cloud–Based Concrete Surface Defect Semantic Segmentation

Visual inspection is one of the main approaches for annual bridge inspection. Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) scanning is a new technology, which is beneficial because it collects the point clouds and the third dimension of the scanned objects. Deep learning (DL)-based methods have attracted researchers’ attention for concrete surface defect detection. However, no point cloud–based DL method currently is available for semantic segmentation of bridge surface defects without converting the data set into other representations, which results in increasing the size of the data set. Moreover, most of the current point cloud–based concrete surface defect detection methods focus on only one type of defect. On the other hand, a data set plays a key role in DL. Therefore, the lack of publicly available point cloud data sets for bridge surface defects is one of the reasons for the lack of studies in this area. To address these issues, this paper created a publicly available point cloud data set for concrete bridge surface defect detection, and developed a point cloud–based semantic segmentation DL method to detect different types of concrete surface defects. Surface Normal Enhanced PointNet++ (SNEPointNet++) was developed for semantic segmentation of concrete bridge surface defects (i.e., cracks and spalls). SNEPointNet++ focuses on two main characteristics related to surface defects (i.e., normal vector and depth) and considers the issues related to the data set (i.e., imbalanced data set). The data set, which was collected from four concrete bridges and classified into three classes (cracks, spalls, and no defect), is made available for other researchers. The model was trained and evaluated using 60% and 20% of the data set, respectively. Testing on the remaining part of the data set resulted in 93% and 92% recall for cracks and spalls, respectively. Spalls of the segments deeper than 7 cm (severe spalls) can be detected with 99% recall.

Video display terminal use and limitations according to italian legislative decree: occupational and forensic perspective.

In this paper, the authors conduct a review inherent in the use of video display units considering the laws currently in force in Italy, with emphasis on critical legislative and operational issues. Video Display Terminal (VDTs) are today an essential element in almost all work environments, from offices where they represent the fundamental work tool to production environments where they are indispensable for carrying out control functions (command stations, quantity management and flows, etc.) or for design work. The risk due to VDTs is one of the factors considered by the Italian Legislative Decree 81/08, so its assessment is part of the employer's obligations and at the same time requires health surveillance by the occupational physician. The new workstations have certainly not reduced visual postural demands, but they have changed them, opening the door to new disor-ders and imposing greater flexibility on the activity of the occupational physician, who often cannot limit himself to an annual inspection of the workplace. The aim of this work is to examine the current critical issues and future prospects of ergophthalmology.

A VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF ASSISTED LIVING RESEARCH: LEVERAGING ADMINISTRATIVE DATA TO STUDY QUALITY

Abstract Because the assisted living industry is neither federally regulated nor federally licensed, methodologies to study the quality of long-term care used in other settings (e.g., annual inspection reports, resident assessment data) do not exist for the large and growing number of assisted living communities and their residents. The objective of this presentation is to present a vision for the future of assisted living research to inform quality using large, national datasets. To do this, the presenter will discuss existing approaches to identify and characterize assisted living communities and their residents using administrative data. A specific focus will be to highlight the opportunities and challenges associated with each approach. The presenter will offer suggestions for possible enhancements in existing approaches and next steps in the study of assisted living aimed at understanding and improving the quality of care delivered in these settings.

The Characteristics of Light-Duty Passenger Vehicle Mileage and Impact Analysis in China from a Big Data Perspective

Vehicle mileage is one of the key parameters for accurately evaluating vehicle emissions and energy consumption. With the support of the national annual vehicle emission inspection networked platform in China, this study used big data methods to analyze the activity level characteristics of the light-duty passenger vehicle fleet with the highest ownership proportion. We found that the annual mileage of vehicles does not decay significantly with the increase in vehicle age, and the mileage of vehicles is relatively low in the first few years due to the run-in period, among other reasons. This study indicated that the average mileage of the private passenger car fleet is 10,300 km/yr and that of the taxi fleet was 80,000 km/yr in China in 2019, and the annual mileage dropped by 22% in 2020 due to the pandemic. Based on the vehicle mileage characteristics, the emission inventory of major pollutants from light-duty passenger vehicles in China for 2010–2020 was able to be updated, which will provide important data support for more accurate environmental and climate benefit assessments in the future.

Juvenile Justice and Women's Clubs: Ogden as a Case Study

Juvenile Justice and Women's Clubs: Ogden as a Case Study

Implications of equipment failure occurring during surgery.

Few formal studies have been performed investigating the frequency of equipment failure during surgery. Surgeons are unable to operate without the plethora of instruments and equipment surrounding them in the operating theatre. As with any mechanical component, instruments and equipment are subject to time- and use-dependent degradation in their performance. Yet no formal requirements exist for the routine inspection or maintenance of instruments. Owing to this lack of information regarding equipment failure we undertook the first investigation of intraoperative equipment malfunction occurring during cardiac surgical procedures. Over a 12-month period cardiac surgeons were required to report equipment malfunction during each procedure. Operating theatre equipment was divided into three categories broadly based on equipment portability and function: group 1, theatre infrastructure and components; group 2, large medical equipment; and group 3, surgical instruments. In a highly significant proportion of operations performed (92%) there was an issue with equipment. The most common issues occurred in group 3 with fine surgical instrument malfunctions; most commonly worn-out needle holders and blunt scissors. Theatre infrastructure and large medical equipment failures (groups 1 and 2) resulted in the cancellation of four cases. Some intraoperative instrument failures were potentially catastrophic. The incidence of equipment failure during cardiac surgery is unacceptably high. In some instances, cases were cancelled and revenue lost owing to equipment malfunction. A balance between the safety and quality of equipment and cost effectiveness is required. These findings suggest that surgical instruments warrant an annual compulsory inspection.