Organizational citizenship behaviors perceived by collectivistic 50-and-older customers and medical-care service performance: an application of stimulus-organism-response theory

PurposeThe study aims to examine the underexplored agenda in organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) through the collectivistic 50-and-older customers' lens when encountering medical-care services by applying stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) theory.Design/methodology/approachThe authors propose an integrative causal model derived from employees OCBs perceived by the collectivistic 50-and-older outpatients in Korean medical-care organizations and test the causal relationships using structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe three dimensions of OCBs are external stimuli to the synergistic relationship of both cognitive and affective organisms for enhancing the organization's external outcomes. The customers' organismic processes mediate the relationships between OCBs and the resultant outcomes. Customer satisfaction plays a pivotal role in determining customers' future behavior when converting the business relationship to friendship.Practical implicationsThe proposed integrated model provides an overall mechanism of the collectivistic customer decision process in the medical-care service setting. The integrated model helps to understand better how customers proceed mental and emotional states with the encountered services and how frontline employees offer extra-roles beyond in-roles to their customers in touching points to maintain superior organizational performance.Originality/valueThe authors respond to the underexplored agenda in the OCB research discipline. The study is one of the few studies to examine the effect of OCBs from collectivistic customers' perspectives and apply a consumer behavior theory to explain a service organizational performance in an integrative causal model.

US sanctions and its consequences on orthopedic surgery on Iran

Background Health and medical services are fundamental demand in civilized nations. Sanctions have always been an obstacle for development, even in health and medical topics, since they aim to reduce the financial and economic power of a country, and their impacts on medical and health systems in the objected country are on inevitable. It is well-established that sanctions contribute to a shortage of supplies in medical devices, and instruments. The shortage of the unique resources of newly-introduced medical and surgical devices prohibits surgeons from implementing novel techniques, which are known to improve medical care service quality. However, considering the application of the sanctions, these products will not be accessible for Iranian patients, and less safe and more complicated approaches will replace them. Results In this study we surveyed opinion of 32 orthopedic surgeons about effect of sanction on orthopedic surgery. Our result showed in upper limb surgeries high cost of equipment have more answers between question, although in lower limb surgeon Changing of method due to lack of facilities with worse results than standard method has more frequency between answer. Both results indicate that sanction made more difficult feasibility of orthopedic surgeon. Conclusions We believe several actions are needed to take place in the current situation by the international organization, to stop this unreasonable and illogical sanction, to prevent devastating results of them.

Economic impact analysis of the coronary heart disease-attributed health care cost savings and productivity gains from the use of Psyllium

Purpose Numerous randomized clinical studies have shown that psyllium fiber lowers serum cholesterol in patients with hyperlipidemia and is thus recognized by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a dietary fiber that may help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) by lowering cholesterol. The purpose of this paper is to assess the potential economic implications for health-care cost savings and quality of life productivity gains if the cholesterol-lowering effect of psyllium, consumed daily as a fiber supplement, could be applied to a broad at-risk population. Design/methodology/approach A cost-benefit analysis tool was used to examine evidence that the use of psyllium as a cholesterol-lowering agent can reduce overall CHD-attributed medical care service costs in the USA among those at high risk of experiencing disease-related events. Findings Results of the analysis showed that the potential net annual avoided medical care service costs and annual quality of life productivity gains among US adults 45 and older with low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels = 130 mg/dL could be up to an average of $870m per year from 2013 to 2020 if everyone in the target population used seven grams of soluble fiber from psyllium daily, corresponding to a net benefit-cost ratio of $1.19 savings in annual medical service cost and annual productivity gains per $1 spent on a psyllium regimen. Originality/value Thus, the use of psyllium fiber as a daily supplement could be recommended as a means to help control the risk for potentially costly cardiovascular-related medical events and to maximize the economic potential for an improved quality of life in adults 45 and older with LDL cholesterol levels =130 mg/dL.

Real Time Telemedical Health Care Systems with Wearable Sensors

The time between detection and response to chronic diseases could go a long way in saving lives. The current trend in health monitoring systems is to move from the hospital centered device to eventually portable personal devices. Hence, Telemedical health care involves the remote delivery of medical care service to either out-of-hospital or admitted patients through wireless network and computer information technology. This paper systematically reviews the most recent works in telemedical health care system to propose a more efficient model. The focus is more on wearable sensors and devices with most attention given to cardiovascular patients in recent times. The huge literature available reflects the size of activity and attention given to telemedicine. The reviewed works are published within the last five years. Furthermore, the proposed systems are compared in terms of their connectivity, targeted application, type of sensor used, etc. Our study reveals Telemedicine to be a profound field with researchers from multidisciplinary sectors. However, there are still many gaps that need to be filled before maturity. Factors such as efficient wireless transmission, cyber data security, sensor design and integration, device miniaturization and intelligent algorithm for multi parameter data fusion require further considerations.

Alcohol intoxication: evaluation of the population appealability and emergency medical care in Kazan

Aim. To study population appealability for emergency medical care with alcohol intoxication as well as the features of medical care service for them in Kazan at modern stage. Methods. The data from emergency call cards from 2015 with the diagnosis «alcohol intoxication» (form No.11/u) were studied. A survey of 271 responders (medical personnel of mobile teams of emergency care and admission departments of the hospitals) of medical care service for people with alcohol intoxication in the streets was performed. Results. In the structure of performed calls for adult popultion the ratio of patients who called an ambulance because of alcohol intoxication was 2.1% and because of the need for urgent care - 5.7%. Males were more prevalent than females: 82.1 and 17.9% respectively. Predominantly people younger than 60 years appealed: among males 82.7%, among females - 79%. Maximum appealability was registered in July (7.4 calls per 10 000 adults); during the week - on Saturday (11.9 per 10 000 adults), and during the day - during the period from 5 to 6 pm. The survey of the teams of ambulances and admission departments demonstrated the need for re-establishment of medical sobering-up stations (83.5 and 80% respectively) and more rarely the responders suggested development of specialized medical departments and active delivery of people with alcohol intoxication to specialized institutions involving law enforcement officials and personnel of specialized sobering-up stations (13 and 14.3% respectively). Conclusion. In the structure of the calls performed by emergency care stations the ratio of patients who called an ambulance because of alcohol intoxication among adults was 2.1% and because of the need for urgent care - 5.7%; the appealability was affected by sex, age and calendar time; analysis of the survey results demonstrated the need for re-establishment of recently closed medical sobering-up stations and for development of specialized medical departments.

Trends of Patients’ Characteristics Admitted Into a Multi-Professional Home Medical Care Service From 2000 to 2009 in Singapore

The main aim of this study is to present the socio-demographic, clinical, and functional characteristics of home medical care patients admitted into one of the oldest home care service over a 10-year period. Data were manually retrospectively extracted from the non-computerized medical records of all patients admitted into Code 4 Home Medical Service from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2009. Records of 1,069 patients were examined. Over the 10-year period, there was an increasing proportion of patients older than 70 years ( B [95% CI], 1.08 [0.43, 1.73]) and dependency on foreign domestic workers as primary caregivers ( B [95% CI], 4.65 [3.71, 5.58]). Cognitive impairment and functional dependency of the patients increased over the years, as assessed using Abbreviated Mental Test score < 7 ( B [95% CI], 1.73 [0.71-2.76]) and Barthel Index = 0 ( B [95% CI], 4.32 [2.74-5.91]). Knowledge about these trends may be helpful to project future demands for home medical care in Singapore.