Management Point Of View Research Articles

Risk assessment as tool for coastal erosion management

The coastal zone of Cartagena city, Colombia provides illustration for applying risk assessments as a basis for guiding coastal management. Much of this coastal reach is heavily urbanized with a few areas of suburban to rural zones. In this study 32.6 km of shoreline under the city's jurisdiction were evaluated for coastal erosion management, calculating the Hazard and Vulnerability Indexes, which together constitute the Coastal Erosion Risk Index which provides a single numerical evaluation of risk. A range of variables were utilized in the calculations including forcing processes (wave height, storm surge, littoral exposure), coastal susceptibility (sandy and rocky shores: dune height, percent washovers, beach width, beach slope, cliff/platform, rock types, structure, weathering), as well as socio-economic, ecological and cultural factors (e.g., land use, percent urbanized, population density, infrastructure, cultural heritage, agency conservation/protection, ethnic communities, etc.). Coastal forcing and susceptibility are the basis for determining the Hazard, resulting mostly from induced susceptibility as a result of 60 years of over-reliance on shore-hardening structures, interrupting/reducing sediment supply, and over-development in terms of urbanization (loss of protective landforms, irreversible coastline modification, beach narrowing, and the growing coastal squeeze). From a management viewpoint, much of the Cartagena urban area has limited options, but the buffer zone between the shoreline and development must be increased (e.g., no new development; planned retreat), building codes updated (e.g., building floors at/below ground level should be flood-proofed, and have uses compatible with/recoverable from flooding/wave impact), and minimize additional shore-hardening (e.g., utilize beach nourishment). Rural and suburban areas in the region still have time to adopt more stringent management including development bans, disallowing replacement of buildings lost to erosion/flooding, large set-back requirements for new development, utilizing ecosystem management for natural protection, and removal of some groin systems. Virtually all management solutions will be costly, so plans are needed at the government level to develop financing systems.

Role of Lawyers in Medical Institutions：From the Viewpoint of Medical Institution Managers

Role of Lawyers in Medical Institutions：From the Viewpoint of Medical Institution Managers

Characterisation and energy assessment of fats, oils and greases (FOG) waste at catchment level

Several of the waste materials that have a negative impact on the sewer system are produced by fats, oils and greases (FOG) discharged from commercial and domestic kitchens. These materials accumulate at different points in the sewer catchment, from kitchens to pumping stations, sewers and sewage treatment works (STWs), and comprise oily wastewater, floating agglomerates and hard deposits. Despite their detrimental effects, these waste materials have a high calorific content and are an ideal feedstock for energy recovery processes. So far, the overall volume of each type of waste and their physical-chemical properties in relation to their collection point are unknown. However, from a management point of view, knowledge on each feedstock quality and volumes is necessary to develop an economic viable solution for their collection and for energy recovery purposes. In this study, FOG wastes collected from households, food service establishments (FSEs), sewage pumping stations, sewers and STWs, were compared to sewage sludge in terms of organic contents and energy potentials. As expected, FOG recovered at source (households and FSEs) were ‘cleaner’ and had a higher energy content. Once mixed with wastewater the materials changed in composition and lost some of their energy per unit mass. Our results showed that around 94,730 tonnes.year−1 of these materials could be recovered from the Thames Water Utilities’ catchment, one of the most populated in the UK. These materials could produce up to 222 GWh.year−1 as biogas, close to double of what is produced with sewage sludge digestion and around 19% of the company energy needs. Finally, even with over six million households in the catchment, the results showed that most of the FOG waste was produced by FSEs (over 48,000 premises) with an estimated average of 79,810 tonnes.year−1 compared to 14,920 tonnes.year−1 from private households. This is an important outcome as recovery from FSEs will be cheaper and easier if the company decides to implement a collection system for energy recovery.

A new model for investigating the factors influencing the innovation in medical services

Purpose This paper tries to examine attitude toward knowledge sharing (KS) for improving the innovation in medical services. So, this paper aims to analyze the influence of information technology (IT), staff, hospital cultures and patients and their families on the attitude toward KS and also examine the influence of attitude toward KS on innovation in medical services. Design/methodology/approach This paper presented a project plan that contains five research hypotheses, with attitude toward KS as a mediating construct. In this paper, Smart PLS 3.0 is implemented to study the calculation. The hypotheses are tested on data collected using structural equation modeling. Data was collected using questionnaires from a hospital in Iran. The statistical population of this research is unlimited. Through using the sample measurement method, the sample size for structural equations has come to be 384. Findings The results showed that all theories of the project are proved. Also, they indicated the importance of IT as an important factor in attitude toward KS and the latter's influence on the innovation in medical services. Furthermore, the attitude toward KS influences positively on innovation in medical services. As a general result, the managers of health organizations should empower employees to participate in decision-making and encourage them to resolve problems together and share medical information to promote innovation in medical services. Research limitations/implications This research must be carefully defined and accepted because the study information had special restrictions. At first, a prejudice was created, because the sample was self-selected. Second, the participants were living in Iran. There were different cultures and lifestyles among countries. Third, this research sample consisted only of hospital staff and managers. Moreover, little empirical research has been conducted on this topic in Iran. Iran’s culture is considerably different from Western culture, and it is unknown whether the same questionnaire that is used in the Iran context can be used in the Western context. In further studies, this research could be extended to contain other psychosocial elements that permit KS in institutions and increase innovation. Practical implications The medical industry is knowledge-intensive, remains a competitive advantage and accumulates knowledge, and the hospitals are the main subject. The role of this research according to providing a functional-theoretical plan enables authorities and practitioners to access thoughts about efficient stimulation attitude toward KS on innovation in medical services in the health sector. Also, the findings of this study at the same time are implemented to study relations between knowledge-sharing elements such as enablers, processes and firm innovation capability. Originality/value Modern study design enables the relations between IT and other influential elements on attitude toward KS and innovation in medical services to be analyzed. This design determines the coexistence of the participation and contest relations among participants, which is not studied in past researches. From a management point of view, this research determined various elements essential to a successful attitude toward KS and investigated the usage of these elements for improving innovation in medical services.

IT-based KM and Productivity Increase in SCM(Case study SIVECO company in Syria)

Knowledge Management (KM) is considered to be one of the management tools in the ever-changing competitive world.[1] The main purpose behind this study is to research the knowledge management impact on productivity increase by the help of information technology (IT) from the viewpoint of planning and supply chain management (SCM) in the Iranian Automobile making company in Syria (Siveco) as one of the siding companies of Saipa automobile making company in Iran. The findings of this paper gained from studying the literature and probing into the experience and search results recorded by the Iranian experts who attended in Siveco company for a period of two months in year 2008 in the early stages of starting up Pride automobile export in Syria which focused on the role of KM in cost reduction (CR), making wealth and value added by preventing and decreasing the stagnant inventory of the production warehouses, optimizing the packing designs, decreasing the amount of defected parts, wasting and operator mistakes, and supplying the ordered parts in time for developing the economic production in the primitive stages of Pride export to Syria throughout the facilities provided in the field of information technology.

Hierarchical classification with subsequent aggregation of heathland habitats using an intra-annual RapidEye time-series

Mapping heathland habitats is generally challenging due to fine-scale habitats as well as spectral ambiguities between different classes. A multi-seasonal time-series of multispectral RapidEye data from several phenological stages was analysed towards the classification of different vegetation communities.A 3-level hierarchical dependent classification using Import Vector Machines was tested, based on the assumption that a probabilistic output per class would help the mapping. The first level of the hierarchical classification was related to the moisture gradient, which was derived from Ellenberg’s moisture indicative value. The second level aimed to separate plant alliances; the third level differentiated individual plant associations.For the final integration of the three classification levels, two approaches were implemented: (i) the F1-score and (ii) the maximum classification probability. The overall classification accuracies of both methods were found to be similar, around 0.7.Nevertheless, based on our expert knowledge we found the probabilistic approach to provide a more realistic picture and to be more practical compared to the result using the F1-score from the management point of view. In addition, the overall performance of the maximum probabilistic approach is better in the sense that the same accuracy of 0.7 was achieved with a differentiation of 33 classes instead of only 13 classes for the F1-score, meaning that the method is able to separate more spectral classes at a more detailed level providing the same accuracy.

Assessment of the differentiation of social and economic development of the municipal districts in the Voronezh region

One of the problems that have arisen in the past and have an inertial impact on the development of the Russian Federation is the problem of heterogeneity of the country’s socio-economic space. The large scale of the space of Russia predetermines the predominantly macroscopic nature of the regulatory impact, the object of which is large territorial formations: economic districts, federal districts, regions of the Russian Federation. Each separate region, each municipality is a complex system with a set of unique factors: geographic location, climatic conditions, resource potential, population, etc. The article presents the author’s methodology for assessing the differentiation of social and economic development of municipalities in the Voronezh region. In modern conditions, the formation of convenient and effective methods and tools for measuring sustainable social and economic development, which make it possible to give an unambiguous interpretation of the results, is of high value both from a research and management point of view. On the basis of the author’s methodology, an assessment of the differentiation of the social and economic development of municipalities in the Voronezh region has been carried out. The proposed method, having individual characteristics in limiting the number of basic indicators along with the existing approaches, contributes to obtaining more objective results and allows it to be used in the development of a regional social and economic Strategy. These indicators are among the most important areas of the region’s social and economic system.

Process discovery on geolocation data

Fleet tracking technology collects real-time information about geolocation of vehicles as well as driving-related data. This information is typically used for location monitoring as well as for analysis of routes, vehicles and drivers. From an operational point of view, the geolocation simply identifies the state of a vehicle in terms of positioning and navigation. From a management point of view, the geolocation may be used to infer the state of a vehicle in terms of process (e.g., driving, fueling, maintenance, or lunch break). Meaningful information may be extracted from these inferred states using process mining. An innovative methodology for inferring process states from geolocation data is proposed in this paper. Also, it is presented the potential of applying process mining techniques on geolocation data for process discovery.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Family Physician MPH Course in Iran: The Viewpoints of Managers and Physicians.

Background:Since 2009, the MPH course has been implemented in Iran. After eight years, this study aimed to evaluate family physician MPH program in Iran.Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted on 255 graduates of family physician MPH, selected through simple random sampling and 95 managers who were involved in the design and implementation of the course in 13 universities, selected by census method, in 2017. Data collection tools were two researcher-made questionnaires, delivered to the subjects through emails. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 21 using central and dispersion indices, Chi-square, and independent t-test.Results:Approximately half of the participants considered the course length as appropriate, 14.5% of them considered the duration of the course short, and 28.9% of them considered it long and there was no significant difference between the views of managers and physicians in this regard. On the other hand, there was a significant difference between managers and physicians regarding the variables of cost-effectiveness, motivation to participate in the course, the necessity of presenting the thesis, applicability of the content, comprehensibility of the content of the course, and desirability of the course load. Thus, a higher percentage of managers acknowledged the necessity of theses and duties as well as the applicability of the content, and a higher percentage of physicians referred to cost-effectiveness and the motivation to participate in the course.Conclusions:According to the results of the study, the participants have proposed some strategies, such as revising the educational content, clarifying the future position of the trained physicians and granting privileges, specifying the program goals, being accurate in selecting motivated applicants with an interest in this field in order to improve the quality of educational courses.

Complementary Relationship between Health Promotion Measures and Career Development Support System:From the Viewpoint of Strategic Human Resource Management

Complementary Relationship between Health Promotion Measures and Career Development Support System:From the Viewpoint of Strategic Human Resource Management

Queueing Analysis of Dynamic Power Management Schemes for Mobile Devices

In this paper, we analyze a queueing system under the dyadic server control, workload control and delivery deadlines of data blocks. From the viewpoint of efficient power management for the wireless interface of a smart mobile device, we first focus on deriving the mean length of an arbitrary cycle time and then investigate the mean energy expenditure during the cycle. Some numerical examples are shown with respect to several control parameters. We conduct simulations to evaluate the proposed analytic energy consumption models. Experiments are also performed by implementing a test program on an off-the-shelf smartphone. Our results can serve as quantitative guidelines for the efficient power management of wireless interfaces in mobile devices.

Research into optimization model for balancing the technological flows at mining enterprises

The purpose of this paper is to develop new approaches for optimizing the technological flows at coal mines. Based on analysis, the area of the presented approaches application has been outlined for decision-making in mining. The concept is to use graph theory methods and network models for balancing the flows incoming to the mine in the form of resources and the output flows in the form of coal, rock, gas, and water. This improves the overall efficiency of functioning the mining enterprise. A new model is proposed that describes the production activity of the underground mining complex for the delivery of three production components to the surface. These components from the viewpoint of rational resource and environmental management can be considered as factors that may have a negative impact on the level of technological scheme in terms of investing advisability, as well as on the environment. These components are coal, rock, methane gas and mine water. Given their stochastic nature, it is accepted for the mathematical description of the movement processes of coal (С), rock (R), methane gas (G) and water (W) to represent them in the form of flows within some technological system of converters, and including the diversification of mining production. The presented approach can be applied not only at the stage of designing, but also to assess the existing state of the coal mines. Special attention is focused on the development of software for decision-making.

Safety Preparedness in the Textile Sector of Pakistan

The need for effective safety systems, in preventing accidents on workplaces, has long been recognized as a necessary part of doing business. This study is aimed to investigate the occupational health and safety (OHS) status and emergency preparedness of textile industries in the Korangi Industrial Area (KIA) of Karachi, Pakistan. The study has used a self-designed and self-administered close-end quantitative questionnaire as a data collection instrument. The study has gathered primary data of a total of 51 responses from 17 textile and garment firms of KIA. Data was collected from three tiers of the organization, including top management, middle management, and lower management employees. The study has used descriptive statistics and specific inferential statistical techniques for data analysis. The findings showed that there were apparent differences between top management, middle management, and lower management viewpoints about their organization’s preparedness status against emergency situations and OHS parameters. Top management considered themselves satisfied with the current status, whereas middle and lower management staff found themselves at higher risks of occupational injuries and hazards. Therefore, it has been comprehensively concluded by the study that textile firms have to consider effective approaches and OHS policies to ensure appropriate implementation and improved status of emergency preparedness and OHS status.

Restructuring the European VAT tax system: advantages and disadvantages of the adoption of a single-rate model - a study based on the Portuguese case

The common VAT system adopted by EU member states comprises a set of various rates, which differentiate the goods and services subject to this tax. However, from a technical and management point of view, it would be preferable to adopt a single tax rate as it reduces distortions and facilitates tax compliance and management. This research seeks to analyse the benefits and disadvantages of adopting a single VAT as a means of simplifying the European VAT model. It takes Portugal as a case study. The main objective of this research is to contribute to the academic debate around the theme of the single rate of VAT versus differentiated rates, through the achievement of a series of analyses and statistical tests to revenues and percentages of GDP that they correspond, in the three scenarios considered in the study: differentiated rates, single rate of 17% and single rate of 21%.In the empirical part, hypotheses were developed, the effects on tax revenue of a differential collection system were analyzed and compared to a possible single rate regime on consumption to verify which one would be more efficient. data comparison permits to verify that the estimated revenue of the single rate of VAT is higher than the values ​​obtained by the system of differentiated rates, in any of the proposed models (17% or 21%). The results of this research are valid for all countries that adopt VAT or general tax transactions.

クライシスマネジメントとリスクマネジメントの視点から見た 国際法のあり方 －対外的危機管理法としての要素をメインとした国際法の構造－

クライシスマネジメントとリスクマネジメントの視点から見た 国際法のあり方 －対外的危機管理法としての要素をメインとした国際法の構造－

Successful Management of Generations

Abstract In the management literature is often encountered with the concept of generation. For example, generation X, Y, millennia’s, and so on. In this article we are looking for an answer to what is the generation, as it is characterized from a management point of view. From the management perspective we consider the selection of those parameters that support managerial decision-making in a real situation. Therefore, they are practically applicable. In the first part we examine the correlation between the generations and Kopčaj development cycles. The second part dealt with the appropriateness of certain characteristics and parameters of generations to manage. In the third part we describe briefly the results of the survey of these parameters in the Slovak companies. Conclusions: 1. there is a very strong correlation between the generations and Kopčaj development cycles. This allows to more accurately characterize the generation, its behavior, characteristics and interaction with employers. 2. on the management characteristics of the generation (or any group) are suitable parameters such as potential, knowledge and energy measured by entropy over the conditions of stability. 3. the survey shows that for the successful integration of generation into the company it is necessary to harmonize these parameters.

Synchronous multiple primary non-small cell lung cancer or intrapulmonary metastasis from an index lesion: a dilemma—case report

: Lung cancer is considered one of the major causes of cancer-related mortality. Our case report wishes to highlight the confusion one may have when faced with a lesion that could be a synchronous lesion or metastasis from an index lesion, and its management including whether re-do VATS is a good option. We report our case of a 68 years old male who came to our attention in March 2018 with history of weight loss and repeated chest infections. He was smoking until he was reviewed in our clinic, with a 40-pack year history. PET scan revealed an intense uptake of left lower nodule of size 3.5 cm (cT2aN0M0). He underwent uniportal VATS left basal segmentectomy and lymphadenectomy with the histopathology confirming a squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) (pT2aN0M0R0). During his follow-up, a new left upper lobe lesion was noticed in February 2019. PET scan showed increased uptake in the lesion and CT guided biopsy showed poorly differentiated SCC (cT1cN0M0). The patient underwent uniportal VATS left upper trisegmentectomy and lymphadenectomy with histopathology revealing the presence of two different lesions this time around: the larger one being a SCC with a staging of pT1cN0M0R0 and the smaller being a basaloid type of SCC with a staging of pT1aN0M0. In our opinion, the three cancerous nodules the patient developed represented multiple primary tumours arising on a background of field change rather than intrapulmonary metastasis from an index lesion (differentiating this was important from management point of view). Moreover, we managed to safely perform a redo surgery via uniportal VATS for the same sided lung lesion. This is feasible as long as the patient has an adequate cardiorespiratory function. We wish to take this opportunity to add to the literature our experience with this case of multiple primary lung cancer (MPLC).

The Status of Indicators of Good Urban Governance in Arak City, Iran, in the Viewpoints of Urban Managers and Citizens

The Status of Indicators of Good Urban Governance in Arak City, Iran, in the Viewpoints of Urban Managers and Citizens

Side effects and practices to improve management of type 2 diabetes mellitus from the viewpoint of patient experience and health care management. A narrative review

IntroductionThere is an alarming increase in the number of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This increase is causing personal, family, social, economic, and political problems. The aim of this article is to ascertain the side effects of treatments, the complications suffered by patients, and the practices to improve management of this disease from the viewpoint of the experience of patients and health care management. Material and methodsA narrative review was conducted of studies on T2DM published in English and Spanish indexed in PubMed, Science Direct, Cinahl, MedLine, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and Google academic. A total of 1118 articles were found, 42 of which referred to the objectives of the review and met the inclusion criteria. ResultsThe side effects and complications experienced by patients and their perception that they do not receive adequate information, together with poor satisfaction, lead to non-adherence to treatment, which impairs patient health and increases health care costs. The proposals in the reviewed studies guide the actions to improve treatment adherence and, thus, quality of life of patients, to decrease side effects and mortality and, therefore, the costs associated to T2DM through: 1) quick and easy access to medical care, 2) quality health education, and 3) participation of patients in the decisions about their treatment and in self-management of their disease to make minimum changes in their lifestyles.

Implementation of Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) in Development of Hospital Service from the Viewpoint of Public and Non-Public Managers in Shiraz

Introduction: Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) have been constructively considered in recent years to reform health sectors in many countries. The aim of this study was to investigate the viewpoints of Shiraz hospital managers on the implementation of public-private partnership model in providing hospital services. Methods: This descriptive study was conducted in Shiraz in 2016. Hospitals affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, private hospitals, charities and investors in the health sector were considered as the research population, that 56 people were selected as research sample. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect data. Data were analyzed applying descriptive and analytical tests such as t-test in SPSS21. Results: Of the 56 samples surveyed, 36 (64%) were from the public sector and 20 (36%) were from the non-public sector. Among the 6 areas considered for PPP implementation, capacity building areas (2.53± 0.53) and socio-cultural (2.58± 0.40) have the highest score and policy area than other areas (2.18 ± 0.48) had the lowest score. Conclusion: From the viewpoint of the participants in the public and non-public sectors, none of the six effective factors in implementing the PPP model in the development of hospital services in Shiraz is not favorable. Authorities and policymakers should increase the level of readiness of hospitals to implement this template by providing an appropriate platform for nongovernmental participation.