The Development of Initiatives and Municipal Referendums in Germany

Direct democracy offers possibilities for citizens to influence political decisions especially at the local level. In Germany, the local political systems have been affected by the introduction of direct democratic tools such as citizen initiatives and local referendums since the Reunification. The state legislations defined new conditions for citizen initiatives and municipal referendums with a minimum number of valid signatures for initiatives and a minimum approval rate for referendums. The chapter evaluates the practice of local initiatives and municipal referendums in Germany and examines the routinization of these tools in local politics.

Teaching Practices that Develop Positive Attitudes towards Mathematics among Joint First Year Students at the Saudi Electronic University

This study seeks to identify attitudes towards mathematics and teaching practices that develop positive attitudes towards mathematics among students of the joint first year at the Saudi Electronic University, from the students’ perspective. The validity and reliability of the instruments were confirmed. The scale of attitudes toward mathematics was applied to (489) In addition to that, (202) were interviewed to identify the teaching practices that develop positive attitudes towards mathematics. The study has found that the attitudes of joint first year students towards mathematics was neutral. It also found that all teaching practices included in the interview had a high approval rate by the students. The study recommendations highlighted the importance of professional development for teachers to master these teaching practices and encourage them to utilize them in their teaching.

Attitudes Toward Posthumous Assisted Reproduction in China: A Multi-Dimensional Survey

Background Professional legislation and ethics guidelines for posthumous assisted reproduction (PAR) are lacking in China. This study aims to measure the attitudes of the general public, IVF couples, and ART practitioners toward PAR in China. Methods A multi-dimensional survey was designed, and electronic questionnaires were used. General demographic data, reproductive viewpoints, attitudes toward PAR, interactive predictive attitudes in couples, and the legal attribute and disposition right of posthumous embryos were evaluated. Results The study found that the traditional Chinese viewpoints of fertility had changed. The approval rates for PAR were 79.10%, 55.32%, and 58.89%, respectively, in the general public, IVF couples, and ART practitioners. Most participants agreed that the psychological well-being of offspring should be prior considered before making a PAR decision (81.84%, 73.61%, and 76.98%, respectively). Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that age, marital status, and gender were common influencing factors while occupation, religion, and pregnancy history showed no support. Males and females showed similar predictive abilities for his/her partner’s attitudes toward PAR (57.87% for males, 61.12% for females). Intercouple agreement analysis showed that the consistent rate was 65.28% in the attitude toward PAR. Conclusion The findings suggested that the approval rate toward PAR was relatively high in China. Legislation and ethics guidelines for PAR maybe be considered in China. The psychological well-being of offspring should be considered before the PAR execution. Due to the huge regional and population differences in China, investigation of larger participants is necessary.

The role of the administrative leadership in raising the motivation to work among the employees and its impact on the distinction of institutional performance in the General Administration of Education in Al-Jawf region: دور القيادة الإدارية في إثارة الدافعية للعمل لدى الموظفين وأثر ذلك على تميز الأداء المؤسسي في الإدارة العامة للتعليم بمنطقة الجوف

The aim of the research is to identify the role of administrative leadership in raising motivation to work among employees and its impact on the excellence of institutional performance in teaching Al-Jouf, and the descriptive analytical approach and the questionnaire were used as a research tool, and the questionnaire consisted of (65) paragraphs distributed on two axes, and was applied to (210) Singles, which varied between (leader, teacher, educational supervisor, administrative assistant). And after analyzing the data statistically, the results came as follows: The statistical indicators showed that the degree to which leaders practiced their role in raising the motivation to work among the employees from the employees' point of view was a degree of agreement, and the average responses ranged between (3.40- 4.19). Among the most prominent phrases in the approval rate: The administrative leadership encourages employees to perform work well, the administrative leadership supports the professional growth of its employees. The research reached a set of recommendations, the most prominent of which are: Providing professional development opportunities for leaderships by providing quality internal and external training programs aimed at enhancing leadership skills to suit contemporary changes and challenges. Improving the preparation of second-grade leaderships programs and developing their leadership and creativity skills. Utilizing the proposed procedural methodology prepared by the researcher based on the (Claire) model to design motivation to work.

Early insurance coverage of elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor for cystic fibrosis in children 6 to 11 years of age

Introduction: Elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (ELX/TEZ/IVA) is a highly effective cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulator therapy (HEMT) originally approved in 2019 for use in patients 12 years of age and older with at least one F508del mutation or a mutation in the CFTR gene that is responsive based on in vitro data. This report describes coverage of ELX/TEZ/IVA for CF in children 6 to 11 years of age prior to the recent age expansion by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Methods: An email was sent to pharmacists and pharmacy technicians through the CF Foundation LISTSERV and all responses regarding ELX/TEZ/IVA use in children 6 to 11 years of age were collected. Results: A total of 65 children from 15 CF care centers were included in the study. A total of 55 children had early coverage of ELX/TEZ/IVA for an overall approval rate of 84.6%. The median time to approval was 15 days. Lung function and weight outcomes were also positive. Conclusions: Early insurance coverage of ELX/TEZ/IVA for CF in children 6 to 11 years was achieved regardless of insurance type and should be considered an option for patients in need of HEMT therapy.

Implementing a Review Process to Facilitate and Prioritize COVID-19 Research: Staying One Step Ahead of the Pandemic

The first coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patient in the state of New Jersey (NJ) was admitted on March 2, 2020. With the number of hospitalized patients increasing exponentially in the following days and no established treatment approaches, research was to play a significant role in this fight. To facilitate review of all COVID-19 research proposals in a large health care network in NJ, we established the COVID-19 Research Review Committee (RRC) and implemented a peer-review process prior to the Institutional Review Board submission. The RRC was tasked with processing, soliciting, reviewing, and prioritizing research proposals and was comprised of a multidisciplinary group of reviewers. Within a 9-week period, three network-wide requests for proposals were released with 238 proposals submitted and 93 approved, an approval rate of 39%. The establishment of the RRC helped ensure scientific merit, better utilization of resources, collaborations across disciplines and network hospitals, and compliance with applicable regulatory and ethical standard.

Attitudes on voluntary and mandatory vaccination against COVID-19: Evidence from Germany

Several vaccines against COVID-19 have now been developed and are already being rolled out around the world. The decision whether or not to get vaccinated has so far been left to the individual citizens. However, there are good reasons, both in theory as well as in practice, to believe that the willingness to get vaccinated might not be sufficiently high to achieve herd immunity. A policy of mandatory vaccination could ensure high levels of vaccination coverage, but its legitimacy is doubtful. We investigate the willingness to get vaccinated and the reasons for an acceptance (or rejection) of a policy of mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 in June and July 2020 in Germany based on a representative real time survey, a random sub-sample (SOEP-CoV) of the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). Our results show that about 70 percent of adults in Germany would voluntarily get vaccinated against the coronavirus if a vaccine without side effects was available. About half of residents of Germany are in favor, and half against, a policy of mandatory vaccination. The approval rate for mandatory vaccination is significantly higher among those who would get vaccinated voluntarily (around 60 percent) than among those who would not get vaccinated voluntarily (27 percent). The individual willingness to get vaccinated and acceptance of a policy of mandatory vaccination correlates systematically with socio-demographic and psychological characteristics of the respondents. We conclude that as far as people’s declared intentions are concerned, herd immunity could be reached without a policy of mandatory vaccination, but that such a policy might be found acceptable too, were it to become necessary.

Pengembangan ChemOnPhone dalam Model Pembelajaran Berbasis Masalah untuk Meningkatkan Motivasi Belajar Peserta Didik

This study aims to increase the learning motivation of students in studying the subject matter of chemical equilibrium. Therefore, we developed learning application based smartphone in a problem-based learning model that called ChemOnPhone which is valid, practical and effective to use. To achieve this aim, we followed the Hannafin and Peck's model development phases: analysis, design, development and implementation. The ChemOnPhone we built had been through validation processes by an educational media and a subject content experts. We then revised the app accordingly by considering these expert reviews until the app considered as valid. To evaluate the practicality and the effectiveness of the app, we then tried it out to Year XI Science students of SMAN 2 Sidrap. The results of media validation and trial showed that: (1) the media was very valid (marked 3.93 out of 4), (2) the content was valid (marked 3.01 out of 4). ChemOnPhone was also considered practical and effective based on (1) The implementation was graded as effective (M = 1.85, 1.5 ≤ M ≤ 2.0), (2) The approval rate was 97.2% and 86.4% by teachers and students, accordingly. ChemOnPhone has met the effective criteria as (1) students learning motivation improved from 60.9% out of 84.4%, (2) students learning activity was averagely 87.5%, which met the active criterion, and (3) the average learning results achieved was 88.4% out of 100%, which pass the effective criteria of ≥ 80%. Overall, ChemOnPhone was valid, practical and effective to use in learning the chemical equilibrium subject.

Embedding an Advanced Pharmacy Technician in an Adult Specialty Pulmonary Clinic to Complete Prior Authorizations Improves Efficiency and Provider Satisfaction

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of a clinic embedded Medication Assistance Program (MAP) specialist on the prescription benefit prior authorization (PA) process and provider satisfaction in an adult pulmonary clinic. Methods: In this mixed methods study, a retrospective cohort analysis was done to determine the turnaround time for the PA process from initial referral to approval or final denial in an adult pulmonary clinic. Additionally, a pre- and post-implementation survey to providers was conducted to assess provider satisfaction and perceptions around the prescription benefit PA process. The first study aim assessed PA efficiency by summarizing PA approval rate and PA turnaround time using descriptive statistics. Any prescriptions written by a clinic provider requiring a PA during the timeframe of June 2018 through August 2018 were included. The second study aim assessed change in provider satisfaction, analyzed via the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: The MAP specialist completed 110 PAs over 3 months for 110 unique patients. Median turnaround time was 3 hours, with 76% of PAs approved in less than 24 hours. Initial approval rate was 82.7%, and overall approval rate following the appeals process was 87.3%. A significant difference between the pre- and post-survey responses were identified in 2 of the 17 questions. Conclusion: Implementation of a clinic embedded MAP specialist to complete PAs demonstrated an efficient process while also improving provider satisfaction.

Measuring strategic performance in Arab universities: A suggested model (MSP UNIs)

The main objective of this article is to determine the validity of the proposed system for measuring strategic performance (MSP Unis) in Arab universities at the level of its three Perspectives; performance measurement, measurement processes, and measurement potentials. However, most of the Arab universities face difficulties in the measurement of their strategic performance due to cost and the lack of human resources specialists in that field. The study was conducted through a questionnaire consisting of 38 items distributed on a sample of 116 experts working in the field of strategic planning in universities registered in the Association of Arab Universities. So, by the use of factor analysis, the results disclosed a very high degree of correlation between the paragraphs and the three dimensions that make up the system. The results of the statistical analysis demonstrated the validity of the proposed strategic performance measurement system for use in measuring the strategic performance of Arab universities from the viewpoint of respondents with a very high arithmetic average amounted 4.30, and a very high approval rate for the content of the paragraphs reaching to 86%. Accordingly, the current study is consistent with the previous studies. The research recommendations obviously have been concluded as (a) An implementation of the suggested system (MSP Unis) in Arab universities and supporting its implementation’s potentials. (b) A Benefiting from the results of the factor analysis in implementation plans on the level of its three Perspectives. (c) Developing training programs to consolidate the proposed MSP Unis. (d) Enabling strategic planning departments to implement the proposed MSP Unis.