Collegial Decision Research Articles

The Hybrid Modality Model in Higher Education Institutions

The aim of the article is to provide a research result to support the process of consensual and collegiate decision-making in order to mix study models in undergraduate degree courses and postgraduate projects in higher education. The deductive method was used as a starting point and a mixed phenomenological-hermeneutic approach was applied for the methodological design, based on the use of quantitative and qualitative techniques, for which a sample of undergraduate and postgraduate students was selected from the active student population in the year 2021. A structured survey was applied as a technique and a nominal scale was used to collect and analyse the data, which made it possible to determine the students' preferences according to the face-to-face or virtual modality, as well as the incidence of the mixture of both modalities for learning. The results of the research show that undergraduate students show a preference for the face-to-face modality, while postgraduate students prefer the virtual modality. From the examination of the problem, the analysis of the theoretical framework and the applied methodology, it is concluded that the results of the research can help in the process of collegiate decision making by the management agents of higher education institutions, to adequately dose the time load of the face-to-face or virtual modalities, as appropriate to the degree courses and projects.

Developing good practices and organisational resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: A retrospective qualitative case study in a higher education institution

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted authorities to enforce social restrictions and business closures, severely affecting the education sector and disrupting academic continuity. While existing studies have primarily focused on the evolution of learning environments, student and academic resilience, and educational policy responses, limited attention has been given to organisational resilience in higher education institutions.This paper addresses this gap by examining the impacts of the pandemic and organisational resilience components within a university of applied sciences. Using Chronicle Workshops and semi-structured interviews, this case study spans from the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 to June 2022, scrutinising the effects on various professions, including top and middle management, teachers, scientific, administrative, and technical staff.Key events included the initial lockdown and the subsequent shift to telework. Social tension during the implementation of COVID-19 certificates emerged as a noteworthy factor. The paper identifies best practices, including anticipative exchanges, investments in occupational health and safety, top-down crisis management, collegial decision-making, technology integration into work processes, creative pedagogical and assessment methods, leadership based on trust and autonomy, self-management, and a strong sense of solidarity. Recommendations for improvement encompass addressing siloed functioning, enhancing crisis communication, prioritising health and safety under normal circumstances, reflecting on technology’s limits in teaching, recognising commitment and skills, ensuring decision transparency, and providing post-crisis support.These findings underscore the significance of considering both social and technical aspects in organisational responses to crises like the pandemic. Strengthening managerial capacity to support staff is crucial for enhancing resilience against future threats.

Background and precancerous diseases of the endometrium during pregnancy

The article presents an analysis of the current state of the problem of background and precancerous diseases of the endometrium. The issues of etiology and pathogenesis of these conditions are reflected, as well as the features and difficulties of diagnosis, treatment and course in patients with pregnancy are presented. The experience of the Tomsk Oncology Research Institute in the treatment of this pathology is presented, as well as clinical cases that clearly demonstrate the possibility of successful treatment of both endometrioid intraepithelial neoplasia and initial uterine body cancer. It should be noted that the results of treatment of this category of patients are quite good, as well as the expediency of careful dynamic monitoring of this category of patients and the possibility of collegial decision-making in determining treatment tactics at all stages of therapy.

The Role of the Executive Authorities of the Russian Federation and the Republic Of Belarus in the Formation and Implementation of the Policy of Patriotic Education

Aims: identification of the specifics of the role of the executive authorities of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus in the actualization of the Union patriotic agenda.Methods: informal content analysis of documents, content analysis of the content of Internet resources, formal legal method, methods of comparative and multilevel analysis.Results and discussion: The conceptual foundations of the phenomenon of «patriotism» in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus are investigated through the prism of the existing functionality of executive authorities. The equivalent position of the countries regarding the semantics of the concept of «patriotism» is revealed along with national trends aimed at supporting various initiatives focusing on issues of patriotic education. The correlation of autonomous state processes in line with patriotism with collegial decisions of Russia and Belarus at the union level on the issue under consideration is shown. The concept of «patriotism» is defined through the prism of the modification of the paradigm of political processes, including at the site of the USBR, taking into account external challenges and threats.Conclusion: The Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus are traditional partners, whose interaction initially had a pronounced axiological aspect. Modern realities in general, increasing external pressure encourage the mobilization of all resources to strengthen the anti-crisis potential and socio-political consolidation. The official discourse and practical events within the framework of the Union State demonstrate the actualization of a new paradigm and integration mechanisms for the formation and strengthening of the Union patriotic agenda and the policy of patriotic education. Interdepartmental communications are of particular importance here. In general, the area under study remains in the field of action of national and interstate mechanisms.

The main elements of bar self-government, as one of the types of regulation of the bar in Ukraine

The article is devoted to the consideration of the main elements of the self-government of the bar in the context of the regulation of the bar in Ukraine. Lawyer self-governance is an important mechanism that allows lawyers to independently solve issues of organization and regulation of their professional activities. Key elements of bar self-governance include bar self-governance bodies, bar councils, bar assemblies, bar disciplinary commissions, and the collegial decision-making process.Bar self-governing bodies are key structures responsible for the regulation and supervision of legal practice. Bar councils perform important functions, providing representation and protection of the interests of lawyers, as well as considering ethical issues and regulating disciplinary cases. Bar meetings are a forum for discussing important issues of the bar community and solving collegial problems.An important aspect of lawyer self-governance is the self-regulation of lawyer activity, which ensures compliance with professional ethical standards and ensures the quality of legal aid.Bar self-government is an important element of the regulation of the bar in Ukraine. The effective work of the self-governing bodies of the bar, such as councils, meetings and commissions, contributes to ensuring professional ethics, self-regulation and the quality of the bar’s activity. An important component of bar self-governance is the adoption of collegial decisions that reflect the opinion and interests of the bar community.However, there are certain challenges and aspects that require attention in the context of self-government of lawyers in Ukraine. For example, the problem may be the issue of financing the legal profession and attracting budget funds. The transfer of powers to administer the system of free legal aid to the self-government of the bar may affect its financial independence and violate the legal status of the bar as an independent self-governing institution.

Разработка и апробация метода и алгоритма формирования коалиций экспертов при исследовании процессов функционирования сетей связи

The issues related to the use of expert assessment methods in order to increase the optimality and objectivity of developed management decisions are considered. The expediency of involving experts is formulated when a collegial management decision is necessary. The basic stages of the research related to the application of the expert assessment method are given. The relevance of the chosen topic is justified by the need to develop effective methods and algorithms aimed at automating the processes of analysis and processing of data obtained during the expert survey, as well as summarizing its results. The aim of the study is to develop and test an algorithm for finding coordinated groups (coalitions) of experts, as well as a method that makes it necessary to work out the final decision on the results of the expert survey. The proposed algorithm for finding coalitions is based on the application of the mathematical apparatus of the theory of sets and algebra of relations; it uses a strict criterion in their formation and replenishment of coalitions, but does not exclude the belonging of experts to several coalitions, which provides a high informative value of the results of expert assessment. The method includes the calculation of weighting coefficients assigned to the formed coalitions taking into account the degrees of experts' membership in them. The resulting decision is formed on the basis of the data obtained by the coalition, which has the maximum dimensionality and the required degree of consistency. The developed method and algorithm were tested on the results of an expert survey for determining the degrees of significance of the processes implemented in communication networks. As a result, coalitions of experts who agreed with each other were formed, as well as the experts, whose opinions are more deviated from the rest, were identified. The coherence of the coalitions is evaluated using the concordance coefficient, and the final decision is formed on the basis of the method of average arithmetic ranks assigned to the studied processes of functioning of communication networks by the experts belonging to the largest coalition.

Risk prediction program for choosing methods of biliary tract decompression in patients with obstructive jaundice caused by tumors: clinical testing

Introduction. The most pressing problems in abdominal oncology surgery are the development of obstructive jaundice as a complication in patients with malignant tumors in the hepatobiliary and pancreatoduodenal area, and the ways to eliminate it and to reduce the risk of adverse events. Our earlier research revealed 14 predictors that together are more likely to cause undesirable postoperative complications, including deaths during minimally invasive biliary tract decompression. On the basis of the data obtained, a computer program “Risk Assessment of Treatment Methods for Obstructive Jaundice” was created.Materials and methods. The program was introduced into clinical practice in Yaroslavl Regional Clinical Oncology Hospital and was tested on 144 patients from 2019 through 2022. Th e program issued a conclusion on the risk of adverse events and assigned the patient to one of the groups where drainage or stenting were recommended for the first stage of biliary tract decompression.Results and discussion. Following a collegial decision based on the results obtained via the program, 58 patients (40.28 %) underwent endoscopic stenting and 86 patients (59.72 %) underwent percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage. In the study group, adverse events developed in 10 patients (6.94 %), while in the control group — in 50 patients (22.94 %), and 134 patients (93.06 %) had no complications, as compared to 168 patients (77.06 %) in the control group.Conclusion. Application of the program based on reliable and practically significant 14 predictors results in a decline in general complications induced by minimally invasive biliary tract decompression from 22.94 % to 6.94 % and a 3.5-fold decrease in mortality from 5.05 % to 1.39 % in patients with malignant neoplasms in the hepatobiliary and pancreatoduodenal area, complicated by obstructive and mixed jaundice.

Improving corporative management in state companies: Prospects, distribution of power and collegial decision

This article presents a methodology for assessing corporate governance belonging to the quasi-public sector organisations. The article discusses the main prerequisites based on which a new methodology for assessing this type of corporate governance is developed and applied. The object of the study is the National Welfare Fund “Samruk-Kazyna". The analysis of corporate governance is considered from the perspective of an economic approach, within which three essential aspects are highlighted: structure, process and transparency. The work also presents a scale for assessing corporate governance, which allows performing a quantitative assessment of the effectiveness of the management system within the organisation. The study presents the results of applying this method, which demonstrate that most companies in the quasi-public sector have already reached a certain level of development in corporate governance, which became the reason for the search for a new approach to assessing this system. The authors emphasise the importance of defining criteria for improving the effectiveness of corporate governance and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of this system. In this context, corporate governance assessment is based on professional assessments and expert opinions and not simply on the presence of specific business processes. Moreover, this assessment must be agreed with the principles and requirements established by the Corporate Governance Code.

Engineering infrastructure of the city: Problems of development and tools for their solution

The questions of the organization of engineering support of residential and non-residential construction objects at the stages from planning to commissioning are studied. So far, these issues have been addressed for each site in a collegial decision-making mode: at Staff meetings, etc., separately, as they arise. This approach demonstrates inconsistency between the actions of construction and resource-supplying organizations both during design and at the construction site, and, as a result, delays in the construction and commissioning of facilities and the growth of social tension. The article presents new tools for increasing the level of interaction between the participants of engineering support processes based on the preliminary, advance interconnection of actions of all participants of the engineering support process and all involved objects. Such tools are especially relevant in large-scale renovation programs of large cities’ housing stock; the article shows the developments applied in the Moscow Housing Renovation Program framework.

Ethical Dilemma Experiences of Nurses in a Tertiary Hospital, Kingdom of Bahrain: A Cross-sectional Survey

<h3>Background</h3> Nurses constitute the vast majority of the healthcare workers, but it is unclear how frequently they encounter ethical dilemmas in Bahrain. Thus, there is a need for nurse administrators in Bahrain to understand the ethical dilemmas their nursing staff may face. <h3>Purpose</h3> The study aimed to explore the ethical dilemmas experienced by nurses in Bahrain and to identify any associations between ethical dilemmas with nurse characteristics. <h3>Methods</h3> A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was undertaken. The setting was inpatient nursing units and the emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Bahrain. Data were collected from nurse participants through convenience sampling from July to August 2020 by using an online 24-item Ethical Dilemma Questionnaire (EDQ) on a 7-point (0-6) Likert scale. Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the hospital's institutional review board. <h3>Results</h3> Among the 390 participating nurses, the mean (SD) EDQ score was 1.24 (0.80), indicating a low overall frequency of ethical dilemmas (between less than a few times per year and up to once per month). The subdomains were patients' actions and decisions, nursing care provisions, personal and collegial actions and decisions, and sharing of information. The participants' characteristics that were found to be statistically significant were gender, nationality, and department of work. Age was found to be negatively correlated. However, nurses' EDQ scores based on job category and years of experience were not found to have a statistically significant difference. <h3>Conclusion</h3> Although nurses had infrequent encounters with ethical dilemmas, they reported more dilemmas when facing low nurse-patient ratios, contesting a prescription order, working with nonresponsive physicians, dealing with patients' lifestyle choices, and handling nonnursing tasks.

Collegiality and efficiency in bureaucracy

This article addresses the relation between the design of regulatory agencies and efficiency, arguing that authority concentrated to a single individual outperforms more collegial decision-making when the regulated firms’ interests are aligned. The tentative explanation is that concentrated leadership reduces the risk for capture. This argument is developed from an empirical case on the markets for mobile and fixed broadband. In the mobile market, the regulated firms are similarly positioned, whereas in the fixed broadband market, the firms typically have adversarial positions, with an incumbent being challenged by entrants. A statistical analysis of regulatory agencies in 33 European countries lends support to the argument that regulation of mobile broadband benefits from having a single decision-maker whereas a bureaucratic regulation with more collegiality functions as well for the fixed broadband.

Revitalising the enterprise university post-COVID 19: a focus on business schools

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to provide a polemic on the evolution of universities and business schools over the past two decades. During this period, universities have increasingly adopted a self-interested stance using business-like practices and behaviours to justify their transformation. The authors provide recommendations aimed at enhancing universities’ contributions and relevance to society, increasing their sustainability broadly defined and better positioning them to help solve wicked problems in a post-COVID-19 world.Design/methodology/approachThis polemic analyses prior literature relating to the evolution of universities and uses this to generate a framework for ways forward for their improvement.FindingsThe authors argue that the evolution of universities into entities with missions and operations designed to mimic business and commercial imperatives has yielded undesirable outcomes including the muddling of the core mission of universities, alienation of key stakeholders and an excessive focus on income growth. Business schools face a tension between forging their own, unique identities and simultaneously striving to meet university university objectives. We term this “the Business School identity paradox”. The authors contend that the way forward requires senior management to re-discover the essence of what it means to be a university, re-establish collegial decision-making within universities that includes built-in feedback loops and a fundamental emphasis on developing graduates with an enlightened perspective that goes beyond technical skills.Originality/valueThis paper is novel in that it analyses the evolution of the “Enterprise University” some 20 years after this term was first coined and in a radically changed environment following the COVID-19 pandemic. This analysis is also forward-looking as the authors re-imagine universities and business schools by identifying opportunities for renewal and improvement in their focus and societal impact. The authors also develop a schema that identifies major influences on universities and business schools, the impact of COVID-19 and strategies for them post-COVID-19.

A clinical case of atypical course and difficulties in diagnosing Hodgkin's lymphoma

Hodgkin's lymphoma (LH) is a B-cell malignant lymphoproliferative disease. There are no specific symptoms characteristic only for this disease. Here may be an asymptomatic increase in peripheral lymph nodes; symptoms of intoxication (B-symptoms — fever above 38 ° C for at least three consecutive days without signs of inflammation; night profuse sweats; weight loss by 10% of body weight over the past 6 months); intermittent fever; itching; in patients with massive mediastinal lesion — chest pain, cough, shortness of breath, symptoms of compression of the superior vena cava, with localization closer to the sternum, discomfort behind the sternum is possible. The presence of the formation of mediastenia and purulent process (abscess, phlegmons, osteomyelitis), resistant to surgery (autopsy, drainage, resection) and antibacterial therapy requires the exclusion of the neoplastic process. It is necessary to carefully observe the technique of performing biopsy and transporting material in a neutral formalin solution at an early date to the pathological - anatomical laboratory, in case of non-standard manifestations of the disease, revision of the biopsy material with mandatory immunohistochemical examination. It is important to bear in mind that the presence of comorbidity (obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus) creates additional objective difficulties in the diagnosis and treatment, and requires a collegial decision by a consultation of specialists in patient management tactics.

Type IVA choledochal cyst: a rare cause of cirrhosis in adults

BackgroundCholedochal cysts (CDCs) are characterized by congenital cystic dilations of the intrahepatic or extrahepatic bile ducts or both. CDCs are very rarely reported in sub-Saharan Africa. This congenital anomaly of the bile ducts is rarely discovered at the stage of advanced chronic liver disease with portal hypertension. We report the first Malagasy case of a type IVA choledochal cyst discovered during an etiological work-up of cirrhosis.Case presentationA 23-year-old woman was hospitalized for jaundice and ascites. Biological and radiological investigations have led to the diagnosis of secondary biliary cirrhosis due to type IVA choledochal cyst. In view of the severity of the liver damage (Child-Pugh C score), a collegial decision (hepato-gastroenterologists and visceral surgeons) had rejected surgical intervention and opted only for the management of cirrhotic decompensation.ConclusionA type IVA choledochal cyst is a possible etiology of advanced chronic liver disease.

Collegial Decision-Making as the Foundation of Local Administration Reform on the Eve of Congress Poland Establishment

Collegial Decision-Making as the Foundation of Local Administration Reform on the Eve of Congress Poland Establishment

Populists in Government: Normal or Exceptional?

AbstractHow is government affected by including populists in a governing coalition? We investigate if populist political parties behave ‘normally’ when they attain power, or if they govern differently from mainstream political parties. Empirically, we use survey data from 282 ministerial advisers from three cabinets in Norway. Our conclusion is that populists govern normally on some governance dimensions and exceptionally on others. Populists in office had ample professional experience, adhered to collegial decision making and thought the bureaucracy delivered quality and was politically responsive – on a par with the non-populists. However, populists differed from non-populist politicians in their contact patterns and their communicative concerns. That populists in this context belong to a party with a long history of parliamentary representation (Norway's Progress Party) suggests elements of exceptionalism are things one should expect to find in practically all populist parties that attain power.

Exploiting Opportunities in the New Normal Context of University Education: A One Year Retrospection

With all teaching and learning activities online and academic staff having to capacitate themselves in navigating the crisis of Covid 19, this article reflects on how the Sri Lankan universities dealt with pandemic scenario while exploring domestic experience over a period of one year commencing March 2020. A literature survey was carried out to gain an understanding of the existing debates surrounding the topic of challenges and opportunities availed in the crisis. 100 invitee academics representing each university participated in a questionnaire survey administered via Google forms and data were analyzed using descriptive statistics in order to gauge the perception among the academics towards the discharge of the university functions and the opportunities exploitable under new normal context. Human Resource Management departments and Learning Management Systems have functioned well despite the crisis persisting so long. In addition, the respondents were satisfied with the data protection measures initiated to address any possible loss of data. A few respondents disagreed with the claim that utilizing IT services had functioned well and that the transition to digital teaching was accomplished without difficulties. There is a higher possibility to revisit and amend existing curriculums and teaching and learning methods, pursuit on course accreditation and validation with professional entities, preparing study packs, materials, toolkits, academic audit and appraisal, review on student feedbacks and making necessary pedagogical and other reforms as appropriate. Regardless of chronic issues such as digital inequality, universities have demonstrated that they can accomplish tasks and retain their legitimacy efficiently. This suggests that Covid 19 has been reasonably responded using adaptive management. All with aspirations to achieve professional excellence mediated by current events and its agility, the article offers some of the key challenges that inevitably emerged. The findings highlight that the Covid 19 has brought about a number of opportunities for which a greater reliance on collegial decision-making between academics and their counterparts, the students are crucial.

Synchronous BI-RADS category 3 lesions detected by preoperative breast MRI in patients with breast cancer: may follow-up be adequate?

The purpose of this study was to analyze the rate of malignancy of synchronous Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) category 3 lesions identified by preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with breast cancer that were followed up rather than biopsied. From electronic medical records, we identified 99 patients treated in our institution for whom preoperative breast MRI identified synchronous BI-RADS 3 lesions. Lesion characteristics, rate of second-look ultrasonography (US), rate of collegial decision-making, and rate of biopsies performed during the period of monitoring were analyzed. Second-look US was performed in 96 of 99 patients and did not reveal any lesion. Collegial decision-making for follow-up validation was asked in 32%. The median time to last MRI was 24.4 months (interquartile range [IQR] [19.3; 36.3]). The median follow-up was 39 months (IQR [28; 52]). Two cancers were diagnosed, one at 5 months and one at 26 months of follow-up. The incidence of malignancy of followed up synchronous BI-RADS category 3 lesions was 1.0% (95% CI [0.1%; 7.1%]) at 6 months and 2.2% (95% CI [0.6%; 8.6%]) at 30 months. Monitoring could be proposed for synchronous BI-RADS category 3 lesions detected in preoperative breast cancer patients. A continued follow-up beyond 2 years could be of benefit. • Follow-up can be proposed for MRI BI-RADS category 3 lesions not detected at second-look ultrasound, possibly after a collegial decision. • Follow-up should be continued annually since cancer may occur beyond 2 years.

Non-readmission decisions in the intensive care unit: A qualitative study of physicians' experience in a multicentre French study.

PurposeDeciding not to re-admit a patient to the intensive care unit (ICU) poses an ethical dilemma for ICU physicians. We aimed to describe and understand the attitudes and perceptions of ICU physicians regarding non-readmission of patients to the ICU.Materials and methodsMulticenter, qualitative study using semi-directed interviews between January and May 2019. All medical staff working full-time in the ICU of five participating centres (two academic and three general, non-academic hospitals) were invited to participate. Participants were asked to describe how they experienced non-readmission decisions in the ICU, and to expand on the manner in which the decision was made, but also on the traceability and timing of the decision. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using textual content analysis.ResultsIn total, 22 physicians participated. Interviews lasted on average 26±7 minutes. There were 14 men and 8 women, average age was 35±9 years, and average length of ICU experience was 7±5 years. The majority of respondents said that they regretted that the question of non-readmission was not addressed before the initial ICU admission. They acknowledged that the ICU stay did lead to more thorough contemplation of the overall goals of care. Multidisciplinary team meetings could help to anticipate the question of readmission within the patient’s care pathway. Participants reported that there is a culture of collegial decision-making in the ICU, although the involvement of patients, families and other healthcare professionals in this process is not systematic. The timing and traceability of non-readmission decisions are heterogeneous.ConclusionsNon-readmission decisions are a major issue that raises ethical questions surrounding the fact that there is no discussion of the patient’s goals of care in advance. Better anticipation, and better communication with the patients, families and other healthcare providers are suggested as areas that could be targeted for improvement.

Adding Judges: Issues in Federal Courts' Governance

Periodically, proposals are advanced for expanding federal courts, adding new judgeships to the courts of appeals, the district courts, or even the Supreme Court. Arguments respecting the size of the Supreme Court are rare, as the Court’s size has been relatively constant through-out the nation’s history and unchanged for more than a century and a half. Expansion of other federal courts, however, is proposed far more often and has occurred in fits and starts. Additions to the courts of ap-peals and, even more, to the district courts are at times helpful in allow-ing courts to function more efficiently. Yet, proposals to add judgeships to these courts should be assessed with care, as expansions can create problems that are more significant than the problems they solve. The most important considerations should be that courts operate consistently with the rule of law, that they inter-pret and apply rules in a predictable fashion in keeping with the text of the Constitution and laws, and that the courts’ decisions allow others to understand the principled bases for applications of the laws. These as-pects of judicial operation can be impeded by adding judgeships, espe-cially to appellate courts where collegial decisionmaking becomes more difficult—and consistency less likely—as the number of judges whose views must be coordinated grows. Before deciding whether to add judgeships, the political branches should review the way that courts currently function, the changes in technology, personnel, and organization that have altered judicial func-tioning, and the degree to which courts have maintained a pace of case dispositions that is responsive to needs of litigants and respect for the law. A look at these factors at present counsels extreme caution, making it very unlikely that expanding the courts of appeals is justified and like-ly that a few district courts merit expansion, but not as many (or as ag-gressively) as currently being advocated by some groups.