Benefits Of Work Research Articles

Promoting the application of pediatric radiomics via an integrated medical engineering approach.

Radiomics is widely used in adult tumors but has been rarely applied to the field of pediatrics. Promoting the application of radiomics in pediatric diseases, especially in the early diagnosis and stratified treatment of tumors, is of great value to the realization of the WHO 2030 "Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer."This paper discusses the general characteristics of radiomics, the particularity of its application to pediatric diseases, and the current status and prospects of pediatric radiomics. Radiomics is a data-driven science, and the combination of medicine and engineering plays a decisive role in improving data quality, data diversity, and sample size. Compared with adult radiomics, pediatric radiomics is significantly different in data type, disease spectrum, disease staging, and progression. Some progress has been made in the identification, classification, stratification, survival prediction, and prognosis of tumor diseases. In the future, big data applications from multiple centers and cross-talent training should be strengthened to improve the benefits for clinical workers and children.

Community-orientated primary health care: Exploring the interface between community health worker programmes, the health system and communities in South Africa.

Due to insufficient number of health workers and the evidence of the benefits of community health workers (CHWs), CHWs are being deployed to provide health care services to under-served communities. In this article, we explore to what extent the South African CHW programmes introduced between 2009 and 2011 are attuned to community needs, integrated into the healthcare system and community structures, and also implemented in accordance with community-orientated primary health care principles. Using a case study approach, we studied CHW teams in seven primary healthcare facilities located in semi-urban and rural areas of Gauteng and Mpumalanga provinces, South Africa. We collected data using in-depth interviews involving facility managers, CHW supervisors, community representatives and key informants, and focus groups and observations of CHWs. The implementation of community-orientated health interventions remains complex. In the different sites, there were efforts to integrate the views of stakeholders (e.g., political leaders) into the implementation of the CHW programmes. However, many residents were more concerned about access to housing than health services. The CHWs services' were found to be generally comprehensive, however inefficient training, supervision and mentorship limited their effectiveness. The multidisciplinary approach to care, as introduced by some sites, helped enhance the knowledge and skills of some of the CHWs on complex health topics. The roll out of community orientated primary health care services is crucial in a resource-constrained setting like South Africa. However, significant socio-economic issues disrupt community involvement and the effective provision of services. Governments need to provide sufficient funds for training, supervision, supplies and remuneration to help overcome these barriers.

Is There a Union Wage Premium in Germany and Which Workers Benefit Most?

Using representative data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), this paper finds a statistically significant union wage premium in Germany of almost three percent, which is not simply a collective bargaining premium. Given that the union membership fee is typically about one percent of workers’ gross wages, this finding suggests that it pays off to be a union member. Our results show that the wage premium differs substantially between various occupations and educational groups, but not between men and women. We do not find that union wage premia are higher for those occupations and workers which constitute the core of union membership. Rather, unions seem to care about disadvantaged workers and pursue a wider social agenda.

Clinical and Quality of Life Benefits for End-Stage Workers' Compensation Chronic Pain Claimants following H-Wave® Device Stimulation: A Retrospective Observational Study with Mean 2-Year Follow-Up.

Previously promising short-term H-Wave® device stimulation (HWDS) outcomes prompted this retrospective cohort study of the longer-term effects on legacy workers' compensation chronic pain claimants. A detailed chart-review of 157 consecutive claimants undergoing a 30-day HWDS trial (single pain management practice) from February 2018 to November 2019 compiled data on pain, restoration of function, quality of life (QoL), and polypharmacy reduction into a summary spreadsheet for an independent statistical analysis. Non-beneficial trials in 64 (40.8%) ended HWDS use, while 19 (12.1%) trial success charts lacked adequate data for assessing critical outcomes. Of the 74 final treatment study group charts, missing data points were removed for a statistical analysis. Pain chronicity was 7.8 years with 21.6 ± 12.2 months mean follow-up. Mean pain reduction was 35%, with 89% reporting functional improvement. Opioid consumption decreased in 48.8% of users and 41.5% completely stopped; polypharmacy decreased in 36.8% and 24.4% stopped. Zero adverse events were reported and those who still worked usually continued working. An overall positive experience occurred in 66.2% (p < 0.0001), while longer chronicity portended the risk of trial or treatment failure. Positive outcomes in reducing pain, opioid/polypharmacy, and anxiety/depression, while improving function/QoL, occurred in these challenging chronic pain injury claimants. Level of evidence: III.

Theoretical Integration of Gig Economy: Exploring various Prospects, Challenges and Regulatory Measures

The gig economy is having an impact on the professional generation of today because of the recent downsizing of skilled professionals and the power of globalization to create jobs for more underdeveloped nations. The gig economy has fundamentally altered individuals' levels of engagement at work and their perceptions of various industries, both of which have a significant impact on the workplace. In this Paper, the opportunities and challenges presented by the rapid expansion of the gig economy are examined. The Study is descriptive in nature and the data is collected by reviewing various literatures, journals, articles and report published by Niti Ayog. This paper examines that instead of working for an employer, the Gig economy is a way of working in which individuals take on separate, independent jobs or temporary jobs. Freelancer is a global marketplace for crowdsourcing and freelancing, says that India is one of the top countries where gig economy culture is growing. The gig economy is undergoing major changes. Although workers benefit greatly from the gig economy in terms of flexibility, employment, freedom, etc., simultaneously, it harms the working environment in the industry. The regulatory framework that governs gig work ought to be strengthened and expanded by the policymakers and regulators. In this regard, the article discusses five main options to regulate the gig workers.

Trade Union Members’ Experiences and Attitudes towards Working from Home during the Pandemic

The pandemic increased working from home (WFH) across the world. The implications of such practice for both organisations and employees are not sufficiently clear. This study examines the work-related experiences and attitudes of trade union members WFH in Malta during the first two years of the pandemic and compares them to those of workers not WFH. Data was collected through a mixed-method approach comprising focus groups (11 participants), a survey (340 participants) and interviews (15 participants). The pandemic appears to have affected less the careers of participants WFH than those of their peers. Participants were generally satisfied with their preparedness and productivity when WFH and experienced better work-related attitudes than those not WFH. But since the pandemic started, significant minorities of participants WFH felt lower levels of happiness and higher stress levels and experienced a deterioration in their physical and/or mental health. Participants experienced differential access to WFH according to their demographics and managerial attitudes. This study recommends trade unions to promote blended work whenever possible, as this system was not only favoured by participants WFH but also appeared to carry considerable benefits for both workers and organisations.

Climate change and informal workers: Towards an agenda for research and practice

The informal economy is crucial for making cities function, and it provides the main means of income for a significant proportion of all workers globally. At the same time, informal workers are extremely vulnerable to the effects of climate change, with higher temperatures and more intense weather events causing direct physical harm and contributing to ill-health. This paper analyzes research from three cities in India and Zimbabwe (Indore, Harare, and Masvingo) to describe the vulnerability of informal workers in several sectors. It highlights the ways in which the direct impacts of climate change are compounded by other factors, including low-quality living conditions and the absence of provision for Occupational Health and Safety (OHS). Informal workers in the three cities have adopted a range of responses to reduce risk, and there are some recent inclusive engagements with local officials to enhance living and working conditions. However, key interventions such as expanding access to social protection (which has important potential to foster climate resilience) often fail to reach the most vulnerable urban informal workers. We conclude with recommendations and an agenda for more equitable policy and practice that can support multiple benefits for informal workers' health, livelihoods, and climate resilience in urban areas.

The Relationship between Service Delivery and Work Engagement on Nurse Performance at Bali Mandara Hospital 2022

Nursing services are the center of attention in every hospital because this service is a main activity that can be used as a benchmark for evaluating health services, especially in inpatient rooms. Performance measurement is carried out to improve the quality of providing nursing care, reduce costs, protect nurses from negligence in carrying out their duties, and protect patients from negligence in health services. Achievement of Indicators based on the Work Plan at Bali Mandara Hospital in 2021 with the performance indicator of the Percentage of Services program that meets Standard Operating Procedures is targeted to reach 100% and the realization reached 85.45%. In 2021, the target of providing salaries and benefits for health workers is 90%, and 87.07% is achieved. The research objective was to determine the relationship between service delivery and work engagement on the performance of inpatient nurses. This study used an observational design with a cross sectional. The number of samples selected was 241 people. Data analysis used multiple logistic regression test. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between service delivery and work engagement on nurse performance. Variable work engagement is the most dominant variable influencing the performance of inpatient nurses at Bali Mandara Hospital.

Modern Dressings for the Treatment of Chronic Wounds and the Family Doctor - Case Reports

The appearance of modern dressings for the treatment of chronic wounds with the concept of moist wound healing has brought a completely new doctrine of their treatment, enabling significantly faster healing and thus a number of other benefits for health systems and health workers, patients with chronic wounds, and for society as a whole, reducing treatment costs drastically. The greatest benefit from their use is achieved by patients with chronic wounds, bearing in mind that a chronic wound significantly reduces and impairs the quality of life of patients. What makes modern dressings for the treatment of chronic wounds special is their simple use, which enables even family doctors to successfully treat chronic wounds with modern dressings, when the location of the wound itself and the involvement of frozen tissue allow it. They can be applied in the doctor's offices as well as in the patients' homes by the patrol services. Their application can be of particular importance to patients in rural areas where the health care system is more difficult to access and where the appointments of health workers, doctors and nurses are not daily. In those cases, patients, as well as their family members, can be educated to apply modern dressings for the treatment of chronic wounds by themselves with occasional control examinations by health workers.

Is There a Union Wage Premium in Germany and Which Workers Benefit Most?

Is There a Union Wage Premium in Germany and Which Workers Benefit Most?

Management of lead (Pb) waste post-closing of used battery smelter

Lead heavy metal (Pb) contamination increases along with the community-managed waste processing of used lead batteries. People living in the vicinity of the lead smelter are at risk of exposure to lead which can have an impact on health. This study aims to identify the level of lead in the environment around post-closure used battery melting. The research used a quantitative descriptive method approach. Data collection was carried out by interview and sampling test. The test sample was taken purposive at two smelting locations, namely Cinangka Village and Jagabaya Village in Bogor Regency, Indonesia. The results showed that there was still lead exposure in the soil and in the plants around the smelting site. The high lead levels that have been found require measurable remediation action. This is to minimize the risks that can be caused to humans who are active around the used battery smelting site. In addition to having a negative impact in the form of lead exposure, lead smelting also provides economic benefits for workers in a smelter. Involving workers in collecting or sorting used batteries is an alternative after closing the smelting site. Meanwhile, smelting activities are only carried out by authorized smelters.

Multi-objective collaborative assembly line design problem with the optimisation of ergonomics and economics

Manufacturing systems are socio-technical systems, with explicit interactions between humans and technologies in shared workspaces. These shared workspaces could also be called hybrid collaborative manufacturing systems, which involve workers as well as technological equipment and combine the benefits of human workers and new Industry 4.0 technologies, such systems are particularly useful in a context requiring flexibility and adaptability. Furthermore, the new Industry 5.0 approach has the objective to shift toward more human-centric and resilient manufacturing systems. The key problems to solve in the design of collaborative manufacturing systems are the combinatorial assembly line balancing problem and the equipment selection problem. An efficient and sustainable line requires a cost-effective choice of equipment while improving the ergonomics and the safety of workers. Both decisions of balancing workload and the assignment of equipment impact the ergonomics of a collaborative system and present conflicting criteria. To this end, we propose a multi-objective approach, the objectives are the optimisation of the investment costs and the ergonomics with a fatigue and recovery criterion. We propose to linearise the fatigue and recovery to formulate a new Mixed Integer Linear Programming formulation. We developed an exact multi-objective solving algorithm based on the ϵ-constraint to obtain the trade-off between these objectives. We conducted numerical experiments with different instances from the literature with promising results for instances with up to 45 operations. Finally, we discuss insightful managerial conclusions and future research perspectives.

Strengthening worker benefits or destroying jobs: Effect of the 2008 Labor Contract Law in China

This study examines the effect of strict enforcement of the 2008 Labor Contract Law (LCL) on firm employment in China. Although the LCL caused a substantial increase in labor cost, there are no negative repercussions on employment. By contrast, surviving firms continue to increase employment driven by the strong labor demand of the fast-growing Chinese economy. However, compared with non-exposed firms, exposed firms suffered negative repercussions on employment after the enforcement of LCL. Exposed firms exhibited reduced wages after the LCL relative to non-exposed firms, suggesting that wage has a mediation effect on reducing the insurance expenditures of both employers and employees; they also raised productivity considerably after the LCL to absorb the incremental labor costs and survive in the market. However, there are heterogeneous effects of wage and productivity among firms of various ownerships and exporting behaviors.

Clinico-epidemiological study of cutaneous adverse drug reactions among the in-patients of dermatology department, Goa Medical College, Goa

&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background:&lt;/strong&gt; An adverse drug reaction (ADR) remains often remains underreported and leads to underestimated cause of morbidity and mortality. ADR frequently manifests as adverse cutaneous drug reactions (ACDRs) and manifestations varies from mild acneiform eruption to life threatening events like toxic epidermal necrolysis. Aim was to study clinic-epidemiological pattern of various ACDRs among inpatients in department of dermatology and study common drugs causing ACDRs and assess causality and severity.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods:&lt;/strong&gt; This retrospective observational study was conducted for a period of one year in department of dermatology in Goa Medical College. All patients fulfilling criteria of study were included.&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results:&lt;/strong&gt; A total of 24 patients were studied. Most common ACDR was observed in age group of 21-40 years. Stevens Johnson syndrome (SJS) (25%) was most common ACDR followed by morbilliform drug rash (20.8%). Other manifestation was DRESS (12.5%), fixed drug eruption (FDE) (12.5%) and angioedema (12.5%), acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP) (8.33%); erythroderma (4.16%) and urticaria (4.16%). Antibiotics were commonly implicated drug category in causation of ACDRs accounting for 37.5% followed by NSAIDS (25%). Based on causality assessment, probable cases had higher incidence - 54.2% followed by possible 37.5%. All patients were considered to have severe reaction as patients required hospitalization for management of adverse reactions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/strong&gt; ADRs are under-reported due to various factors and practicing doctors should be encouraged to report ACDRs in order to improve medical therapy for the benefit of healthcare workers and patients worldwide.&lt;/p&gt;

SELF-DIRECTED CARE IN HOME-BASED LONG-TERM CARE DURING THE PANDEMIC: POLICY AND PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted strengths and challenges of the self-directed care model for home-based long-term care. We discuss policy and practice implications drawing on interviews with over 50 home-and-community-based-services consumers, caregivers, workers, and providers in Kansas. Low-pay, lack of benefits, rising wages in competing sectors, enhanced unemployment and COVID-19 concerns exacerbated workforce shortages that compromised consumer safety and well-being. The lack of budget authority for self-directed consumers in Kansas limited their ability to address these issues. Furthermore, the self-directed model was excluded from emergency funding sources that would have enhanced pay and benefits for workers, including sick pay for quarantine, pointing to the need for targeted funding. Emergency flexibility allowing paid family caregivers addressed care needs for some but is temporary and should be expanded. In the managed care model, MCOs still kept their capitated payment despite significant unfilled care hours, and thus pay-for-performance incentives need to be revisited.

The effect of temporary workers and works councils on process innovation

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the effects of temporary workers and works councils on process innovations at manufacturing sites. The impact of temporary workers, commonly viewed as a means of operational flexibility and cost savings, on firms’ ability to innovate is underexplored. Works councils represent and help integrate temporary workers, but are often equated with unions, which have been criticized as barriers to innovation, especially in the US.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use secondary data collected by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) of the German Federal Employment Agency. Specifically, the authors conduct a series of regression analyses using 11-year panel data covering the period 2009–2019 with 11,641 manufacturing site-year observations.FindingsThe results suggest that the use of temporary workers initially promotes process innovation, but at too high a level, it impairs firms’ ability to innovate. Furthermore, the results suggest that works councils have a positive impact on innovation and dampen the curvilinear effect found with respect to temporary workers.Originality/valueResearch has largely focused on the cost and flexibility benefits of temporary workers. The authors analyze the effectiveness of temporary workers in terms of innovativeness. By including works councils, the study also consider the contextual environment in which temporary workers are employed. Finally, the results reject the assumption that works councils have a similar negative impact as unions on innovation; in fact, the authors find the opposite.

Peer Workers in Co-production and Co-creation in Mental Health and Substance Use Services: A Scoping Review

People with lived experience of mental health challenges are extensively employed as peer workers within mental health and substance use services worldwide. Research shows that peer workers benefit individuals using such services and can have essential roles in developing recovery-oriented services. However, understanding how peer workers’ contributions, by their role, functions, and input can be better used remains a critical challenge. Research on public sector innovation has focused on relevant actors collaborating to tackle complex demands. Co-production and co-creation are concepts used to describe this collaboration. Co-production refers to the collaboration between providers and users at the point of service delivery, whereas co-creation refers to collaboration starting in the early service cycle phases (e.g., in commissioning or design), including solution implementation. We overviewed research literature describing peer workers’ involvement in mental health and substance use services. The research question is as follows: How are peer workers involved in co-production and co-creation in mental health and substance use services, and what are the described outcomes? A literature search was performed in 10 different databases, and 13,178 articles were screened, of which 172 research articles describing peer workers’ roles or activities were included. The findings show that peer workers are involved in co-production and function as providers of pre-determined services or, most often, as providers of peer support. However, they are rarely engaged as partners in co-creation. We conclude that the identified peer worker roles have different potential to generate input and affect service delivery and development.

The impact of a community health worker intervention on uptake of antenatal care: a cluster-randomized pragmatic trial in Dar es Salaam.

The provision of high-quality antenatal care (ANC) is important for preventing maternal and newborn mortality and morbidity, but only around half of pregnant women in Tanzania attended four or more ANC visits in 2019. Although there is emerging evidence on the benefit of community health worker (CHW) interventions on ANC uptake, few large-scale pragmatic trials have been conducted. This pragmatic cluster-randomized trial, implemented directly through the public sector health system, assessed the impact of an intervention that trained public sector CHWs to promote the uptake of ANC. We randomized 60 administrative wards in Dar es Salaam to either a targeted CHW intervention or a standard of care. The impact of the intervention was assessed using generalized estimating equations with an independent working correlation matrix to account for clustering within wards. A total of 243 908 women were included in the analysis of our primary outcome of four or more ANC visits. The intervention significantly increased the likelihood of attending four or more ANC visits [relative risk (RR): 1.42; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.05, 1.92] and had a modest beneficial effect on the total number of ANC visits (percent change: 7.7%; 95% CI: 0.2%, 15.5%). While slightly more women in the intervention arm attended ANC in their first trimester compared with the standard-of-care arm (19% vs 18.7%), the difference was not significant (RR: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.84, 1.22). Our findings suggest that trained CHWs can increase attendance of ANC visits in Dar es Salaam and similar settings. However, additional interventions appear necessary to promote the early initiation of ANC. This study demonstrates that routine health system data can be leveraged for outcome assessment in trials and programme evaluation and that the results are likely superior, both in terms of bias and precision, to data that are collected specifically for science.

TURNING PLATFORM WORKERS INTO OWNERS: ESOP-TYPE BUYOUTS OF LABOUR-BASED PLATFORMS

Platform work is often characterised by economic insecurity, dehumanising control procedures, isolation, deepening racial, economic and gender inequalities, and other socio-economic problems. There are lively debates underway concerned with how to regulate or limit the negative effects of platform capitalism. This article reviews two of the most common calls for action – regulation and platform co-operatives. We argue that there is also an unexplored, complementary option, which uses the network effects of platforms to provide greater benefits for platform workers. To understand this alternative, we introduce the American Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) mechanism for employee buyouts, redefine the model according to the main cooperative values, and apply it to the platform economy. We conclude that there is a third option is available to governments and municipalities, namely to require an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) in the local subsidiary of the platform company. Keywords: Platform economy, platform co-operativism, employee buyouts, platform ESOP

Retrospectives: Sadie T.M. Alexander: Black Women and a “Taste of Freedom in the Economic World”

The employment history of African American women is notable because of their higher labor force participation rates compared to other women in the US. This essay discusses Sadie T.M. Alexander’s analysis of Black women and work based on her 1930s speeches and writings. Alexander assessed Black women workers’ contribution to Black American living standards and national output. A proponent of women’s gainful employment and economic independence, Alexander’s views on the benefits of industrial employment for women and family life stood in stark contrast to White social welfare reformers who discouraged maternal employment in favor of households with male breadwinners. Alexander criticized the unequal treatment of Black and White women under protective labor law, particularly with respect to domestic servants’ exclusion from New Deal minimum wage and maximum hour protections. The legacy of discriminatory policies continues to affect the economic status of African American women today through racial disparities in social welfare provisions and worker benefits.