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Management Resources (management + resource)
Selected AbstractsDiscrepancies in Reported Levels of International Wildlife TradeCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2005ARTHUR G. BLUNDELL aduanas; CITES; especies en peligro; programa de aranceles armonizados Abstract:,The international wildlife trade is a principal cause of biodiversity loss, involving hundreds of millions of plants and animals each year, yet wildlife trade records are notoriously unreliable. We assessed the precision of wildlife trade reports for the United States, the world's largest consumer of endangered wildlife, by comparing data from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) with U.S. Customs data. For both U.S. imports and exports, CITES and Customs reported substantially different trade volumes for all taxa in all years. Discrepancies ranged from a CITES-reported volume 376% greater than that reported by Customs (live coral imports, 2000) to a Customs' report 5202% greater than CITES (conch exports, 2000). These widely divergent data suggest widespread inaccuracies that may distort the perceived risk of targeted wildlife exploitation, leading to misallocation of management resources and less effective conservation strategies. Conservation scientists and practitioners should reexamine assumptions regarding the significance of the international wildlife trade. Resumen:,El comercio internacional de vida silvestre es una causa principal de la pérdida de biodiversidad, ya que involucra a cientos de millones de plantas y animales cada año; no obstante eso, los registros del comercio son notoriamente poco confiables. Evaluamos la precisión de los registros de comercio de vida silvestre de Estados Unidos, el mayor consumidor de vida silvestre en peligro en el mundo, mediante la comparación de datos del Convenio Internacional para el Comercio de Especies de Flora y Fauna Silvestre en Peligro (CITES) con datos de la Aduana de E.U.A. Tanto para importaciones como exportaciones, CITES y Aduana reportaron volúmenes de comercio de todos los taxa sustancialmente diferentes en todos los años. Las discrepancias abarcaron desde un volumen reportado por CITES 376% más grande que el reportado por la Aduana (importaciones de coral vivo, 2000) hasta un reporte de la Aduana 5202% mayor que el de CITES (exportaciones de caracol, 2000). Estos datos ampliamente divergentes sugieren imprecisiones generalizadas que pueden distorsionar el riesgo percibido por la explotación de vida silvestre, lo que conducirá a la incorrecta asignación de recursos para la gestión y a estrategias de conservación menos efectivas. Los científicos y profesionales de la conservación deberían reexaminar sus suposiciones respecto al significado del comercio internacional de vida silvestre. [source] A quality assurance audit: Phase III trial of maximal androgen deprivation in prostate cancer (TROG 96.01)JOURNAL OF MEDICAL IMAGING AND RADIATION ONCOLOGY, Issue 1 2000A Steigler SUMMARY In 1997 the Trans-Tasman Radiation Oncology Group (TROG) performed a quality assurance (QA) audit of its phase III randomized clinical trial investigating the effectiveness of different durations of maximal androgen deprivation prior to and during definitive radiation therapy for locally advanced carcinoma of the prostate (TROG 96.01). The audit reviewed a total of 60 cases from 15 centres across Australia and New Zealand. In addition to verification of technical adherence to the protocol, the audit also incorporated a survey of centre planning techniques and a QA time/cost analysis. The present report builds on TROG's first technical audit conducted in 1996 for the phase III accelerated head and neck trial (TROG 91.01) and highlights the significant progress TROG has made in the interim period. The audit provides a strong validation of the results of the 96.01 trial, as well as valuable budgeting and treatment planning information for future trials. Overall improvements were detected in data quality and quantity, and in protocol compliance, with a reduction in the rate of unacceptable protocol violations from 10 to 4%. Audit design, staff education and increased data management resources were identified as the main contributing factors to these improvements. In addition, a budget estimate of $100 per patient has been proposed for conducting similar technical audits. The next major QA project to be undertaken by TROG during the period 1998,1999 is an intercentre dosimetry study. Trial funding and staff education have been targeted as the key major issues essential to the continued success and expansion of TROG's QA programme. [source] A Pilot Study Analyzing Mortality of Adults With Developmental Disabilities Residing in Nursing Homes in ConnecticutJOURNAL OF POLICY AND PRACTICE IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 3 2010Gerard J. Kerins Abstract A review of mortality cases for persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) in the state of Connecticut (USA) revealed that the majority of deaths in residential settings occurred in nursing homes. However, it was not clear why individuals with ID were residing in nursing homes, or what brought them there. The authors conducted a preliminary study to elicit better understanding of the circumstances resulting in nursing home residency for people with ID. Charts for a small sample of deaths occurring in nursing homes were examined and select data extracted, including basic demographic data, the previous residential setting, the length of stay, medical conditions, case management intensity, and documented rationale for continued nursing home residency. The data revealed that many individuals were admitted to nursing homes at an earlier age than for the nondisabled general population. People with ID stayed in these residences longer, and died later than the general population of nondisabled individuals admitted to nursing homes. About half the sample received case management on at least an annual basis; a third had no documented case management. Lack of appropriate alternate residential settings, lack of support services for families, and lack of case management resources for adults with ID residing in nursing homes in Connecticut are all apparent from the findings. Failure to use existing resources such as group homes to their potential capacity, and other similar policies should be re-examined. [source] Identification of a spatially efficient portfolio of priority conservation sites in marine and estuarine areas of FloridaAQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 4 2009Laura Geselbracht Abstract 1.A systematic conservation planning approach using benthic habitat and imperilled species data along with the site prioritization algorithm, MARXAN, was used to identify a spatially efficient portfolio of marine and estuarine sites around Florida with high biodiversity value. 2.Ensuring the persistence of an adequate geographic representation of conservation targets in a particular area is a key goal of conservation. In this context, development and testing of different approaches to spatially-explicit marine conservation planning remains an important priority. 3.This detailed case study serves as a test of existing approaches while also demonstrating some novel ways in which current methods can be tailored to fit the complexities of marine planning. 4.The paper reports on investigations of the influence of varying several algorithm inputs on resulting portfolio scenarios including the conservation targets (species observations, habitat distribution, etc.) included, conservation target goals, and socio-economic factors. 5.This study concluded that engaging stakeholders in the development of a site prioritization framework is a valuable strategy for identifying broadly accepted selection criteria; universal target representation approaches are more expedient to use as algorithm inputs, but may fall short in capturing the impact of historic exploitation patterns for some conservation targets; socio-economic factors are best considered subsequent to the identification of priority conservation sites when biodiversity value is the primary driver of site selection; and the influence of surrogate targets on portfolio selection should be thoroughly investigated to ensure unintended effects are avoided. 6.The priority sites identified in this analysis can be used to guide allocation of limited conservation and management resources. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||