Broader Operations Research Articles

How can outdoor sports protect themselves against climate change-related health risks? – A prevention model based on an expert Delphi study

ObjectivesTo systematically develop an adaptation model to reduce climate change-related health risks for outdoor athletes. DesignDelphi Method study. MethodsA classic asynchronous Delphi study was conducted with a total of three survey rounds. 24 experts from the eight largest outdoor sport associations by membership in the German Olympic Sports Confederation were included as well as 24 medical experts with expertise in sport medicine, internal medicine, allergology, dermatology, infectiology, or toxicology. Based on open-ended questions, panelists were asked to consider prevention measures for sport organizations and clubs. Free text responses were analyzed by qualitative content analysis according to Mayring. ResultsExperts recommended establishing the following eight fields of prevention measures: technical and structural measures; organizational measures; personalized measures; basic, advanced, and continuing education; concepts of action, warning concepts, and financial concepts; cooperation and coordination; campaigns; and evaluation measures. ConclusionsThe pyramid model presented in this study systematizes possible sport-specific adaptation measures on climate change by empirical aggregation of knowledge from scientists, sport organizations, clubs, trainers, and professional athletes. To assess the effectiveness of these prevention measures, sport organizations may incorporate them not only into broader operations but also everyday training routines.

Schooling (for) Japanese children in cosmopolitan Singapore: building bridges and erecting barriers

ABSTRACT The Japanese community in Singapore comprises mainly white-collar workers and their families. This article addresses issues concerning education, overseas living, and identity-related investments made visible by way of examining schooling and parenting practices. Framed within a critique which recognizes schooling and identity investment as being inherently ideological in nature, the discussion centers around a Japanese school in whose broader operations both parents and other Japanese institutions are involved. Subsequent analysis is directed towards deconstructing (1) institutionalized practices relating to ways in which Japanese overseas organize their lives and frame their life experiences; and (2) the means by which particular notions of Japanese cultural and national heritage are legitimated and fostered through schooling. The article concludes with the observation that the maintenance of an ideologized form of Japaneseness, and not the engenderment of cosmopolitan or globalized identities, constitutes the dominant driving force behind Japanese-medium schooling in Singapore.

Medical support for law enforcement-extended operations incidents

Objective: As the complexity and frequency of law enforcement-extended operations incidents continue to increase, so do the opportunities for adverse health and well-being impacts on the responding officers. These types of clinical encounters have not been well characterized nor have the medical response strategies which have been developed to effectively manage these encounters been well described. The purpose of this article is to provide a descriptive epidemiology of the clinical encounters reported during extended law enforcement operations, as well as to describe a best practices approach for their effective management.Design: This study retrospectively examined the clinical encounters of the Maryland State Police (MSP) Tactical Medical Unit (TMU) during law enforcement-extended operations incidents lasting 8 or more hours. In addition, a qualitative analysis was performed on clinical data collected by federal law enforcement agencies during their extended operations.Results: Forty-four percent of missions (455/1,047) supported by the MSP TMU lasted 8 or more hours. Twenty-six percent of these missions (117/455) resulted in at least one patient encounter. Nineteen percent of patient chief complaints (45/238) were related to heat illness/dehydration. Fifteen percent of encounters (36/238) were for musculoskeletal injury/pain. Eight percent of patients (19/238) had nonspecific sick call (minor illness) complaints. The next most common occurring complaints were cold-related injuries, headache, sinus congestion, and wound/laceration, each of which accounted for 7 percent of patients (16/238), respectively. Analysis of federal law enforcement agencies’ response to such events yielded similar clinical encounters.Conclusions: A wide range of health problems are reported by extended law enforcement operations personnel. Timely and effective treatment of these problems can help ensure that the broader operations mission is not compromised. An appropriate operational strategy for managing health complaints reported during extended operations involves the deployment of a well-trained medical support team using the core concepts of tactical emergency medical support.

A NEW DIRECTION IN WORLD BANK URBAN LENDING TO LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES*

The urban development loans of the World Bank are acquiring a regional rather than a city‐specific orientation in several countries, especially in Latin America. These broader operations often dovetail national trends of decentralization in the political, administrative and fiscal structures. Given the current constraints of the central governments in meeting the growing demands of urbanization through incremental top‐down grants, these operations aim at a gradual substitution of unrequited transfers with long‐term loans to regional and local governments. The paper reviews the implications of this approach in terms of distribution and efficiency and suggests that it may be more suitable in countries undergoing economic adjustment. The objective is to sustain motivation in fiscal effort and resource mobilization at the city level, and possibly establish a different rationale for external credit supporting local infrastructure and service improvements.