PP127 Issues On The Estimation Of The Opportunity Cost Threshold Value

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (S1) ◽  
pp. 115-116
Author(s):  
Karla Hernandez-Villafuerte ◽  
Bernarda Zamora ◽  
Yan Feng ◽  
David Parkin ◽  
Nancy Devlin ◽  
...  

Introduction:There is no consensus on which methods to use to estimate an opportunity cost threshold for the efficient allocation of resources. Researchers have attempted to estimate an evidence-based threshold value, but only a few approaches have been considered and any estimate is currently used by policy makers. This study aims at exploring three assumptions normally applied in the threshold estimation: (i) approaches assume that there is always a displacement involving a loss of health; however, empirical studies suggest that one of the first responses of local health care purchasers is to squeeze greater efficiency out of providers; (ii) to be sure about the appropriate threshold it is necessary to know which health services purchasers are giving up to introduce a new treatment; current estimates bypass this lack of information by averaging the effects of changes in expenditure by clinical area; (iii) recent methodologies consider a single health outcome: mortality; however, health outcomes of many clinical areas may not be well reflected in mortality.Methods:We propose data envelopment analysis (DEA) as a methodology that can help to address these issues by considering efficiency to measure opportunity cost per Primary Health Trust (PCT) in England and by including several outcomes in addition to mortality. This is the first time that DEA is tested in this context.Results:Results suggest that the majority of health locations have the possibility of decreasing their expenditures between 1 percent and 15 percent without affecting outcomes.Conclusions:Estimation of the threshold should allow for observation of the actual level of inefficiencies as well as an ability to consider the previous capacity of health locations to respond to changes in expenditures. Moreover, it is crucial to select the appropriate set of health outcomes, such that they reflect health system priorities, otherwise, we would be estimating a threshold that does not reflect likely displacement.

Author(s):  
Daniel King

This paper looks into the relationship between Greek medicine and Egyptian culture in Tebtynis. Cultural interaction in this context has often been interpreted from a perspective that privileges the status of Greek culture: Hellenistic medical treatises (and other texts) were imported to Tebtynis to ‘improve’ the local community and local health-care. This paper looks at two aspects of Greek medical culture at the site: theoretical Hippokratic treatises and pharmaceutical recipes. These medical documents were associated with the Egyptian community in the village, especially the famous sanctuary of Soknebtynis. Analysis suggests that these documents were part of a medical culture that transcended cultural or ethnic divides; there is, this paper argues, considerable evidence for the co-existence of Greek medicine and Egyptian religious practice and ritual life.


Author(s):  
Charlotte M Roy ◽  
E Brennan Bollman ◽  
Laura M Carson ◽  
Alexander J Northrop ◽  
Elizabeth F Jackson ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic and global efforts to contain its spread, such as stay-at-home orders and transportation shutdowns, have created new barriers to accessing healthcare, resulting in changes in service delivery and utilization globally. The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of the literature published thus far on the indirect health effects of COVID-19 and to explore the data sources and methodologies being used to assess indirect health effects. Methods A scoping review of peer-reviewed literature using three search engines was performed. Results One hundred and seventy studies were included in the final analysis. Nearly half (46.5%) of included studies focused on cardiovascular health outcomes. The main methodologies used were observational analytic and surveys. Data were drawn from individual health facilities, multicentre networks, regional registries, and national health information systems. Most studies were conducted in high-income countries with only 35.4% of studies representing low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Conclusion Healthcare utilization for non-COVID-19 conditions has decreased almost universally, across both high- and lower-income countries. The pandemic’s impact on non-COVID-19 health outcomes, particularly for chronic diseases, may take years to fully manifest and should be a topic of ongoing study. Future research should be tied to system improvement and the promotion of health equity, with researchers identifying potentially actionable findings for national, regional and local health leadership. Public health professionals must also seek to address the disparity in published data from LMICs as compared with high-income countries.


2021 ◽  
pp. 088541222110129
Author(s):  
Li Fang ◽  
Joshua Drucker

This study conducts a meta-analysis of empirical studies that have measured the spatial scale of industrial clustering. Two types of scales are examined: the peak scale (at which cluster effects are maximized) and the maximum reach (beyond which cluster effects are undetectable). We find that the scale varies significantly by the unit of analysis, industry sector, country of study, and the sources of cluster effects examined (e.g., knowledge spillovers, localization, and urbanization). Planners and policy makers should tailor the geographies embodied in cluster strategies to match the specific local needs and circumstances.


Author(s):  
Dalmacito A Cordero

Abstract As the world welcomes the availability and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, coupled with it is the ‘hesitant’ predicament of some Filipinos to get vaccinated because of the confusing information regarding its efficacy. With this, the government needs to build up public trust to assure a successful vaccination program. A recent study suggested that a more ‘localized’ public education and role-modeling from public officials and health authorities can help in building public trust. However, this needs a lot of clarification if applied in the current situation where education is fully executed online. The problem now lies in the country’s poor internet connectivity which greatly affects the online setup. This study then proposes that a house-to-house massive information campaign by local health care personnel which is led by a medical doctor to ensure a credible explanation of the entire procedure. In the same way, the idea of public officials as role-models seemed to be ineffective since there were already casualties linked to the vaccine. A consistent transparent approach is suggested in lieu of this which can prepare the country for a more defensive strategy to fight the pandemic.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 2708
Author(s):  
Jurgita Švedienė ◽  
Vitalij Novickij ◽  
Rokas Žalnėravičius ◽  
Vita Raudonienė ◽  
Svetlana Markovskaja ◽  
...  

For the first time, the possibility to use L-lysine (Lys) and poly-L-lysine (PLL) as additives with pulsed electric fields (PEF) for antimicrobial treatment is reported. The antimicrobial efficacy of Lys and PLL for Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Trichophyton rubrum and Candida albicans was determined. Inactivation of microorganisms was also studied by combining Lys and PLL with PEF of 15 and 30 kV/cm. For PEF treatment, pulses of 0.5, 1, 10 or 100 μs were applied in a sequence of 10 to 5000 at 1 kHz frequency. The obtained results showed that 100 μs pulses were the most effective in combination with Lys and PLL for all microorganisms. Equivalent energy PEF bursts with a shorter duration of the pulse were less effective independently on PEF amplitude. Additionally, various treatment susceptibility patterns of microorganisms were determined and reported. In this study, the Gram-negative E. coli was the most treatment-resistant microorganism. Nevertheless, inactivation rates exceeding 2 log viability reduction were achieved for all analyzed yeast, fungi, and bacteria. This methodology could be used for drug-resistant microorganism’s new treatment development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Prenestini ◽  
Marco Sartirana ◽  
Federico Lega

Abstract Background Hybrid professionalism is one of the most effective ways to involve clinicians in management practices and responsibilities. With this study we investigated the perceptions of doctors and nurses on hybridization in clinical directorates (CDs) in hospitals. Methods We investigated the attitudes of healthcare professionals (doctors and nurses) towards eight hospital CDs in the Local Health Authority (LHA) of Bologna (Emilia Romagna, Italy) 6 years after their implementation. We used a validated questionnaire by Braithwaite and Westbrook (2004). Drawing on Palmer et al. (2007), we added a section about the characteristics of department heads. In all, 123 healthcare professionals in managerial roles completed and returned the questionnaire. The return rate was 47.4% for doctors and 31.6% for nurses. Results Doctors reported an increase in clinical governance, interdisciplinarity collaboration, and standardization of clinical work. Hybridization of practices was noted to have taken place. While doctors did not see these changes as a threat to professional values, they felt that hospital managers had taken greater control. There was a large overlap of attitudes between doctors and nurses: inter-professional integration in CDs fostered alignment of values and aims. The polarity index was higher for responses from the doctors than from the nurses. Conclusion The study findings have implications for policy makers and managers: mission and strategic mandate of CDs; governance of CDs, leadership issues; opportunities for engaging healthcare professionals; changes in managerial involvement during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also discuss the limitations of the present study and future areas for research into hybrid structures.


2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Wachhaus

Combatting chronic disease (prevention and treatment of obesity, diabetes, heart health, and stroke) requires action at the local level, both to educate the public and to provide health services. Effective collaboration among local organizations devoted to educating the public about, and treating patients of, these diseases is a key component of successful health care. To better understand local efforts, a social network analysis of five local health care networks spanning eight counties in Maryland was conducted. The purpose of this exploratory research was to discover whether collaborative networks exist at the local level, to map the networks, and to assess their strengths and needs.


2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 681-700 ◽  
Author(s):  
Androniki Katarachia ◽  
Electra Pitoska ◽  
Grigoris Giannarakis ◽  
Elpida Poutoglidou

Purpose Based on agency theory, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants on the dissemination level of corporate governance disclosure (CGD). Design/methodology/approach The sample of the study incorporates listed companies in Nifty 500 Index for the period 2009-2014. The Governance Disclosure Score calculated by Bloomberg is used as a proxy for the dissemination level of corporate governance information. In total, eight explanatory variables are uses, namely, board’s size, number of board meetings, CEO duality, presence of women on the board, company’s size, financial performance, Tobin’s Q ratio and financial leverage. Findings The results of study suggest a need for improvement in CGDs by Indian companies, as they fail to comply the majority of the proposed disclosure items. Furthermore, it is revealed that the number of board director, the value of company, the financial leverage and the presence of women affect negatively the dissemination level of corporate governance information. While, the size of company is the only determinant that positively affects the extent of CGD. Practical implications The results are valuable because they reveal the attributes that determines which companies needs less or extra monitoring by shareholders and investors regarding the applied corporate governance practices. In addition, the study can be valuable to policy makers responsible for the regulation of company’s accountability in relation to corporate governance practices. Originality/value The study extents previous studies by incorporating for the first time Bloomberg’s rating approach regarding the dissemination level of CGD in Indian context.


2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 14-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Biermann ◽  
Philipp Pattberg ◽  
Harro van Asselt ◽  
Fariborz Zelli

Most research on global governance has focused either on theoretical accounts of the overall phenomenon or on empirical studies of distinct institutions that serve to solve particular governance challenges. In this article we analyze instead “governance architectures,” defined as the overarching system of public and private institutions, principles, norms, regulations, decision-making procedures and organizations that are valid or active in a given issue area of world politics. We focus on one aspect that is turning into a major source of concern for scholars and policy-makers alike: the “fragmentation” of governance architectures in important policy domains. The article offers a typology of different degrees of fragmentation, which we describe as synergistic, cooperative, and conflictive fragmentation. We then systematically assess alternative hypotheses over the relative advantages and disadvantages of different degrees of fragmentation. We argue that moderate degrees of fragmentation may entail both significant costs and benefits, while higher degrees of fragmentation are likely to decrease the overall performance of a governance architecture. The article concludes with policy options on how high degrees of fragmentation could be reduced. Fragmentation is prevalent in particular in the current governance of climate change, which we have hence chosen as illustration for our discussion.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-384
Author(s):  
Peter W. Grandjean ◽  
Burritt W. Hess ◽  
Nicholas Schwedock ◽  
Jackson O. Griggs ◽  
Paul M. Gordon

Kinesiology programs are well positioned to create and develop partnerships within the university, with local health care providers, and with the community to integrate and enhance the activities of professional training, community service, public health outreach, and collaborative research. Partnerships with medical and health care organizations may be structured to fulfill accreditation standards and the objectives of the “Exercise is Medicine®” initiative to improve public health through primary prevention. Barriers of scale, location, time, human resources, and funding can be overcome so all stakeholder benefits are much greater than the costs.


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