scholarly journals Modular service provision for heterogeneous patient groups: a single case study in chronic Down syndrome care

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Fransen ◽  
V. J. T. Peters ◽  
B. R. Meijboom ◽  
E. de Vries
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Information Transfer ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Healthcare Delivery ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Care Provision ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Healthcare Provision ◽  
Patient Groups

Abstract Background Service modularity could be promising for organizing healthcare delivery to heterogeneous patient groups because it enables cost reductions while also being responsive towards individual patients’ needs. However, no research on the applicability of modularity in this context exists. To this end, we conducted a qualitative single-case study on chronic healthcare provision for Down syndrome patients, delivered by multidisciplinary pediatric Downteams in the Netherlands, from a modular perspective. Methods We conducted six semi-structured interviews with coordinators of multidisciplinary Downteams in six hospitals. In addition, we gathered data by means of observations and analysis of relevant documentation. We transcribed, coded, and analyzed the interviews utilizing the Miles and Huberman approach. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) were applied in this study. Results In all six Downteams studied, the modular package for Down syndrome patients (i.e. the visit to the Downteams) could clearly be divided into modules (i.e. the separate consultations with the various professionals), and into different components (i.e. sub-elements of these consultations). These modules and components were linked by different types of customer-flow and information-flow interfaces. These interfaces allowed patients to flow smoothly through the system and allowed for information transfer, respectively. Conclusion Our study shows a modular perspective is applicable to analyzing chronic healthcare for a heterogeneous patient group like children with Down syndrome. The decomposition of the various Downteams into modules and components led to mutual insight into each other’s professional practices, both within and across the various Downteams studied. It could be used to increase transparency of delivered care for patients and family. Moreover, it could be used to customize care provision by mixing-and-matching components. More detailed research on chronic modular care provision for patients with DS is needed to explore this.

Critical and Inhibiting Success Factors in Interorganizational Networks

2020 ◽  
pp. 63-86
Author(s):  
Viviana Durão ◽  
António Carrizo Moreira
Keyword(s):  
Success Factors ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Interorganizational Networks ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Strategic Partnerships ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Organizational Network ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter, based on a single case study, has as its main objective to analyze a real example of creating an inter-organizational network and to perceive what was done for the selection and creation of the strategic partnerships and inter-organizational network and what factors or conditions can inhibit these partnerships from having long-term success and throughout its life cycle. For this, a qualitative study based on action research and semi-structured interviews was conducted. Results show although many companies settle in inter-organizational networks to gain competitive advantage, cases of failure are still quite high. In this case, upstream partnerships have not been based on long-term trust and commitment, which has jeopardized the continuity of the network, although there is an express desire to re-establish contacts. The partnership established downstream did not show the same commitment to continue the partnership with a total termination of the relationship.

Discourses of Professionalism in Front-Line Service Work: Insights from a Case Study in an Italian Bank

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 829-845 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Carollo ◽  
Luca Solari
Keyword(s):  
Observational Data ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Employment Relationship ◽  
Service Work ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Front Line ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Triangular Employment Relationship

The article draws on the literature on the triangular employment relationship in the service industry, as well as on the debate on contemporary forms of professionalism, to explore the varied uses of the discourse of professionalism in a banking company. Methodologically, it is a single-case study based on 61 semi-structured interviews, company documents and observational data. The research results show how, in the company studied, the notion of professionalism was used both by individual employees and, at the collective level, by union organizations to advance front-line employees’ and customers’ interests vis-a-vis the management. Moreover, rather than a single discourse, several discourses of professionalism coexisted within the company, and they were subject to constant debate and contestation. The article thus advances extant research on both contemporary forms of service work and professionalism, while providing a bridge between these two streams of literature which, to date, have barely talked to each other.

E-Government in São Paulo: the case of the restructuring of Channel 156 in the city of Limeira

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matheus Pantaroto Conejo ◽  
Gustavo Hermínio Salati Marcondes de Moraes
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Municipal Government ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Sao Paulo ◽  
São Paulo ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Government Information ◽  
Structured Interviews

The study aimed to identify the consequences of a low-cost restructuring process of an e-government initiative in the state of São Paulo. The measures adopted strengthened interaction between government and citizens and the initiative received an award for the good results achieved. A single-case study was carried out on Channel 156 of the municipal government of Limeira. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, participation in meetings with the program’s managers and technicians, and analysis of internal documents available to researchers. The findings contribute to studies on the use of information technology by public agencies, an area as yet poorly explored. The research may help in restructuring similar initiatives in other contexts through the use of appropriate management and information technology tools, resulting in better service to citizens.Palavras chave: E-government. Information technology. Single-case study. Public management.Link: http://www.ies.ufpb.br/ojs2/index.php/ies/article/view/30850/16875 

scholarly journals "Big digital" bank vs local bank: How to cope with the controversial situations?

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 8-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauro Paoloni ◽  
Giorgia Mattei ◽  
Niccolo’ Paoloni ◽  
Valentina Santolamazza
Keyword(s):  
Mergers And Acquisitions ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Banking System ◽  
Management Process ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Strategic Management Process ◽  
The Relationship

The Italian banking system has changed profoundly and nowadays banks have to adapt their strategies to attain an adequate level of profitability (Mattei, 2019). Digitalization and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are useful to obtain this result. However, at the same time, they can have a negative impact on the relationship between the bank and the territory, compromising the local economic growth (Caporale, Di Colli, Di Salvo, & Lopez, 2016). The objective of this work is to understand if any strategies could be undertaken to maintain the territorial relationship even when M&A and digitalization have become necessary. The methodology used is an ethnographic exploratory single case study (Yin, 1984). The information collected using semi-structured interviews is interpreted through qualitative inductive content analysis (Elo & Kyngäs, 2008). The interviews suggest that even when M&A and digitalization have a negative impact on the relationship between bank and territory, these two processes, if well-managed, could both improve the bank’s profitability and the contact with the local reality. Therefore, if a strategic management process is defined in advance, it is possible to maintain, or, even gain profitability

Hybridity and the use of performance measurement: facilitating compromises or creating moral struggles? Insights from healthcare organizations

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agathe Morinière ◽  
Irène Georgescu
Keyword(s):  
Performance Measures ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Public Hospitals ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Hospital Data ◽  
Time Dimension ◽  
Healthcare Organizations ◽  
Content Type

PurposeThis study aims to understand whether and how the use of performance measures in the context of healthcare organizations facilitates the dynamics of compromise or whether it creates moral struggles among a wide variety of actors. It offers novel insights into the concept of hybridity by investigating its underlying moral dimension. Drawing upon the sociology of worth theory (Boltanski and Thévenot, 1991, 2006), this paper examines how actors negotiate and compromise over time concerning issues of justice, involving the use of performance measures on a day-to-day basis.Design/methodology/approachThe article presents a single case study of a medical unit in a French public hospital. Data were obtained through the ethnographic method, semi-structured interviews and internal financial and accounting documents.FindingsUnlike earlier accounting studies, the authors analyze whether, and how, accounting, on one hand, contributes to the dynamics of compromise between actors with divergent values that characterize hybrid organizations, and, on the other hand, increases tensions among actors with convergent values involved in caregiving. This offers practical insights into three relational mechanisms underlying the dynamics of compromise and their limits through the time dimension.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors use a single case study in a country-specific context.Practical implicationsThis study helps managers of healthcare organizations to understand the relationships between the use of performance measures and their impact on the evaluation of worth in practice.Originality/valueIn terms of theoretical contribution, the authors show how the sociology of worth (Boltanski and Thévenot, 1991, 2006) complements the analysis of hybridity and develop an original approach to understanding the ambivalent role of performance measures in bringing together divergent values within French public hospitals.

Using a Qualitative Interpretive Approach in Educational Technology Implementation

2020 ◽  
pp. 318-331
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Osman Adam
Keyword(s):  
Developing Country ◽  
Technology Implementation ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Doctoral Research

This chapter presents some methodological issues raised in the research process of an interpretive researcher in a maiden doctoral programme in a developing country. The chapter draws on a doctoral research experience which employed an interpretive case study approach as the methodology and a combined lens of activity and agency theories as to the theoretical foundation. The research relied on a single case study in a developing country context. The chapter offers an overview of some practicalities of carrying out a single case study research using an interpretive philosophy by presenting the different viewpoints using semi-structured interviews, documents and participant observation, and analysing the data through hermeneutics. The chapter presents some challenges and how interpretive research methods can be used as a clear methodological strategy, especially in an environment where many researchers are not familiar with this research approach. This reflective account provides lessons for others who wish to go through an interpretive process of researching an information systems phenomenon.

Lifecycle view of managing different changes in projects

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-143
Author(s):  
Lauri Vuorinen ◽  
Miia Maarit Martinsuo
Keyword(s):  
Change Management ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Engineering Company ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Project Lifecycle

Purpose A project contractor can promote the success of a delivery project by planning the project well and following a project management methodology (PMM). However, various changes typically take place, requiring changes to the project plan and actions that deviate from the firm’s established PMM. The purpose of this paper is to explore different types of changes and change management activities over the lifecycle of delivery projects. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative single case study design was used. In total, 17 semi-structured interviews were carried out during a delivery project in a medium-sized engineering company that delivers complex systems to industrial customers. Findings Both plan-related changes and deviations from the PMM were mapped throughout the project lifecycle. Various internal and external sources of change were identified. An illustrative example of the interconnectedness of the changes reveals the potential escalation of changes over the project lifecycle. Managers and project personnel engage in different change management activities and improvisation to create alternative paths, re-plan, catch up, and optimize project performance after changes. Research limitations/implications The empirical study is limited to a single case study setting and a single industry. The findings draw attention to the interconnectedness and potential escalation effect of changes over the lifecycle of the project, and the need for integrated change management and improvisation actions. Practical implications Efficient change management and improvisation at the early phase of a delivery project can potentially mitigate negative change incidents in later project phases. Changes are not only the project manager’s concern; project personnel’s skilled change responses are also helpful. The findings emphasize the importance of the project customer as a source of changes in delivery projects, meaning that customer relationship management throughout the project lifecycle is needed for successful change management. Originality/value The study offers increased understanding of changes and change management throughout the project lifecycle. The results show evidence of plan-related and methodology-related changes and their interconnections, thereby proposing a lifecycle view of integrated change management and improvisation in projects.

The role of formal and informal mechanisms in implementing lean principles in construction projects

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 1322-1338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lena Elisabeth Bygballe ◽  
Maria Endresen ◽  
Silje Fålun
Keyword(s):  
Construction Projects ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Construction Project ◽  
Lean Construction ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Lean Principles

Purpose Previous research shows that implementing lean construction is not a straightforward task. The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of formal and informal mechanisms in implementing lean principles in construction projects. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on a single case study of the implementation of innovative lean principles in a public construction project in Norway. The study is based on qualitative data, including 17 semi-structured interviews with 21 individuals, document analysis, and observations in meetings and seminars, in addition to informal conversations. Findings Formal mechanisms, including contractual arrangements, have the potential to both facilitate and hamper the implementation of innovative lean principles in a construction project. They might create coherence, but at the same time they might limit the scope of the concept in such a way that others do not accept it. Informal mechanisms, including social and lateral relationships and trust aid implementation, both directly by creating commitment and by modifying the challenges that the formal mechanisms potentially incur. Formal mechanisms may, in turn, nurture the informal ones. Research limitations/implications The research is based on a single case study within the Norwegian public sector, which is dependent on specific public procurement regulations and subject to strong contractual traditions. Originality/value The research extends the existing knowledge of implementation of lean construction in the construction industry. It helps refining the understanding of the role played by formal and informal mechanisms, and the interplay between them in the implementation process. This knowledge is also relevant for process innovations in construction in general.

Reverse logistics

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 1447-1460
Author(s):  
Emerson D. Pacheco ◽  
Flávio I. Kubota ◽  
Eduardo K. Yamakawa ◽  
Edson P. Paladini ◽  
Lucila M.S. Campos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Logistics ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Single Case Study ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Household Appliance ◽  
Consumer Dissatisfaction

Purpose Increased competition and access to information are forcing companies to provide quality to their products and services, aligned with a growing society pressure for less harmful environmental practices. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how the adoption of reverse logistics (RL) may contribute to the generation of competitive advantage and improved quality in a part substitution process of a household appliance company. Design/methodology/approach This paper carried out a single case study in a household appliance company. The study collected data through semi-structured interviews in addition to document analysis and observation. Findings The implemented practices enhanced service maintenance and customer services and provided a more effective monitoring of defective parts. Moreover, such practices reduced unnecessary part substitutions, consumer dissatisfaction and undesired disposal in the environment. RL in the studied company has offered a potential contribution to the company quality strategies by providing more part returns, assuring cost savings, and reducing time to solve field problems. Research limitations/implications The study was limited to a single case study. Thus, the study findings are not subject to generalization for other similar organizations. Originality/value This paper is one of the few studies on RL in a household company in the context of an emerging economy. Such feature denotes in a singular scenario in RL investigations about recovering defective parts.

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