Willing and Able? The Screening and Adoption of Habitual Family Venture Opportunities

This article develops a two-part theoretical framework synthesizing the socioemotional wealth (SEW) perspective with image theory to explain the ways in which family decision makers screen and potentially adopt habitual new venture opportunities. The model theorizes that opportunities are initially screened according to their ability to preserve SEW and fit with the family’s value images and subsequently explains how SEW willingness interacts with the family entrepreneur’s trajectory and strategic images to predict whether the venture will be pursued as a serial or portfolio opportunity. Theoretical implications and directions for future research are also discussed.

Does Family Decision-Making Power Improve Women’s Happiness?

It is almost a consensus that the stronger family decision-making power a woman has, the happier she will be. While using the China Family Panel Studies, this study reveals a long-overlooked fact that women’s control over more family decision-making power does not necessarily improve their happiness. The results of the ordinary least squares and ordinal logit model confirm this finding, and the propensity score matching method corroborates the conclusion. Heterogeneity analysis shows that among those women with less education and lower social status, the negative happiness effect of women’s family decision-making power is particularly significant. Women’s traditional attitudes and self-esteem are two important factors which hinder women’s family decision-making power from enhancing their happiness.

The Family Decision Making Patterns of Children with Special Needs: a Sociology Study of the Family

This study aims to explain information about the patterns of family decision making for parents who have children with special needs in the city of Makassar. This type of research is descriptive qualitative. The results of the study show that parents are key figures who play a very important role in providing role models, guidance, and affection in the process of child development. The role of parents in the acceptance of children with special needs is very important. Parents are the best guides and helpers for the independence of children with special needs. The mother as one of the parents of children with special needs has an important role in understanding the needs and development of their children. This is related to the mother's acceptance of children with disabilities, which is shown in the attitude to face children. If parents lack understanding of children with special needs, it can result in a lack of attention and consider the child to be unlucky in the family. Parents are the determinants of a child's life before and after birth. Therefore, it is the responsibility of parents to fully accept the existence of their children and treat them equally in all aspects of life with children in general without any discriminatory attitude and to provide the widest possible opportunity for education.

Pilot Study to Implement a Resident and Family Decision Guide

In this first stage of an 8 state initiative designed to assist nursing homes in reducing unnecessary hospital readmissions, 16 nursing homes were identified and invited by CMS and state agency advisors to participate in the pilot study of the effects of intervention (use of the Guide). Selected facilities received an online orientation to the project and onsite visit from project team leadership prior to launch. Pre and post implementation data were uploaded to a secure section of the project website by the facilities. Three facilities withdrew due to change in top management and a fourth facility provided incomplete data resulting in data for analysis from 12 pilot facilities. Results show the average reduction in readmissions was 31.2% for the project period as compared with the 3-month pre-project period. This presentation will include facility reports of the effect of Guide use on resident and family decision making.

Abstract 14806: Circumstances Surrounding End of Life in Pediatric Heart Transplant: A Report From the Pediatric Heart Transplant Society

Introduction: The Institute of Medicine called for scientific investigation and the development of guidelines to improve end of life care for pediatric patients with serious illnesses. Despite high morbidity and mortality in pediatric heart transplantation (HTx), research on the end of life care needs of this population is extremely limited. Aims: This study aimed to describe the circumstances surrounding death of pediatric HTx patients and examine associations between location of death and technological interventions at end-of-life with demographic, disease, and HTx-related factors. Methods: This retrospective analysis of the Pediatric Heart Transplant Society registry utilized descriptive statistics and standard univariate analysis to examine associations between location of death and patient factors. Results: Of 9,217 registry entries, 2,804 (30%) deaths occurred; 1,310 while awaiting HTx; 1,494 post-HTx. Location of death was only recorded for 1,113 patients which included 804 waitlist deaths; 89% occurred in the hospital, primarily in ICU settings (74%) with most requiring mechanical ventilation (77%). A subset (39%) were supported by ECMO/VAD at time of death with 69% receiving inotrope support. Location of death was captured for 309 post-HTx patients with only 22% occurring in hospital; primarily in the ICU (74%) with half receiving mechanical ventilation (52%) and a smaller proportion supported by ECMO/VAD (18%) or inotropes (21%) at time of death. Overall, location of death was not associated with patient sex, race, ethnicity, insurance type, or primary etiology. Out of hospital death was associated with older patient age (p<0.01). Family decision to withdraw life-sustaining interventions was included as a contributing cause of death in 5.4% of waitlist cases and 3.5% of post-HTx cases. Conclusions: Death occurred in ~1/3 of patients captured in this pediatric HTx registry. ICU deaths with high use of technological interventions were common, particularly in waitlisted patients, but family decision to discontinue interventions was infrequently cited. Findings underscore the need for palliative care interventions and improved research strategies to better understand end of life in pre- and post-HTx pediatric populations.