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Performance Standards (performance + standards)
Selected AbstractsReview of identification and traceability legislation for pigs in AustraliaAUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL, Issue 7 2007N Schembri Objective To assess Australia's capability to trace pig movements in the event of an exotic disease outbreak by highlighting the commonalities and inconsistencies between the various state and territory legislations in defining how pig producers are located; their pigs are identified; and whether movement records are required post,farm gate. Procedure A review of the identification and traceability legislation applicable to pigs in Australia was undertaken over a 6 month period. The appropriate legislative Acts and Regulations were downloaded from the Australasian Legal Information Institute internet site (http://www.austlii.edu.au/) and reviewed. Results The Australian pig industry currently uses the branding method (tattooing) to identify pigs for sale or slaughter, with each state responsible for its own pig identification and movement control systems. Areas of concern identified included inconsistencies with the minimum weight or age of pigs that require identification; discrepancies between methods of tattoo registration and shortfalls in documentation for recording pig movements. Conclusion Our findings highlight the flaws in Australia's current state legislative Acts and Regulations for identifying pigs and tracking their movements, which compromise the ability of jurisdictions to meet the endorsed National Performance Standards. Improvements in these areas will enhance security to the pig and other livestock industries in the event of future exotic disease outbreaks. [source] IN BETWEEN CURING AND COUNTING: PERFORMATIVE EFFECTS OF EXPERIMENTS WITH HEALTHCARE INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTUREFINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY & MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2007Signe Vikkelsø Performance standards and accountability pervade modern healthcare. According to Michael Power, this may signify a new rationality of governance characterized by control of controls, which affects practices not by direct intervention, but through the processes by which practices are made auditable. The paper addresses this thesis by exploring the construction of a Danish standard for electronic patient records. It is shown that making healthcare auditable activates deep tensions between programs of clinical practice, quality control, evidence based medicine, and casemix funding, resulting in an ambiguous and unstable standard. During this process, however, particular notions of patients, diseases, and diagnoses emerge as undisputed innovations, which may come to survive the subsequent career of the standard. The paper discusses the performative effects of these innovations and argues that information infrastructure has become an analytically important site for exploring the substantial effects of new rationalities of governance in healthcare. [source] Validity of High-Stakes Assessment: Are Students Engaged in Complex Thinking?EDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT: ISSUES AND PRACTICE, Issue 3 2004Suzanne Lane The validity of high-stakes assessments and accountability systems is discussed in relation to the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The extent to which content standards and assessments are cognitively rich, the challenges in setting performance standards, and the impact of high-stakes assessments on instruction and student learning are addressed. The article argues for quality content standards, cognitively rich assessments, and a cohesive, balanced assessment system. [source] Measuring effectiveness of TQM training: an Indian studyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2003Sasmita Palo Total Quality Management (TQM) is a never ending process of improving work processes. It operates according to the premise that organisations cannot rest comfortably without continuously improving whatever is being done. There has to be a culture of continuous improvement and everyone in the organisation must strive towards it. This could be accomplished only through continuous training. The present study seeks to examine the role of training as well as measuring its effectiveness for successful implementation of TQM. For this purpose, data have been retrieved from a public sector enterprise manufacturing crude steel in India. The findings of the study are based purely on primary survey. Pearson's Correlation Coefficient with their significance levels have been used to measure the effectiveness of TQM training and the correlation between TQM training and selected factors. The authors have found that training creates awareness, builds employees' commitment to quality policy and strategy, facilitates teamwork, enhances performance standards, and bolsters the skills and abilities of employees. However, the organisation needs to focus more upon improving communication competencies, multiple skill development and customer value training. Successful TQM training in the organisation needs more budgetary allocation and commitment, support and enthusiasm of the top management. [source] Implementing Quality Improvement Strategies in Brazilian Hospitals: A Model for Guidance of the Initial Stage of ImplementationINTERNATIONAL TRANSACTIONS IN OPERATIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2002T. Diana. Since the early 1990s, Brazilian hospitals have increasingly adopted quality improvement strategies with a view to attending more demanding customers and to the higher performance standards required by the Ministry of Health. However, most efforts have not been successful, partly because hospitals lack adequate methodologies, namely implementation models. This paper presents a two-stage model to help Brazilian hospitals deploy such strategies more effectively. It focusses on the development and pilot-test of the model for the buy-in stage. Distinctive features of the model were found to be critical for results at this stage: 1) An ad hoc structure to manage the changes involved; 2) A performance measurement system to lever and monitor its implementation, while aligning the actions taken with strategy objectives. Other aspects found to be crucial for success were creative application of model elements to the culture of the hospital and to Brazilian contingencies. [source] Development of Geriatric Competencies for Emergency Medicine Residents Using an Expert Consensus ProcessACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 3 2010Teresita M. Hogan MD Abstract Background:, The emergency department (ED) visit rate for older patients exceeds that of all age groups other than infants. The aging population will increase elder ED patient utilization to 35% to 60% of all visits. Older patients can have complex clinical presentations and be resource-intensive. Evidence indicates that emergency physicians fail to provide consistent high-quality care for elder ED patients, resulting in poor clinical outcomes. Objectives:, The objective was to develop a consensus document, "Geriatric Competencies for Emergency Medicine Residents," by identified experts. This is a minimum set of behaviorally based performance standards that all residents should be able to demonstrate by completion of their residency training. Methods:, This consensus-based process utilized an inductive, qualitative, multiphase method to determine the minimum geriatric competencies needed by emergency medicine (EM) residents. Assessments of face validity and reliability were used throughout the project. Results:, In Phase I, participants (n = 363) identified 12 domains and 300 potential competencies. In Phase II, an expert panel (n = 24) clustered the Phase I responses, resulting in eight domains and 72 competencies. In Phase III, the expert panel reduced the competencies to 26. In Phase IV, analysis of face validity and reliability yielded a 100% consensus for eight domains and 26 competencies. The domains identified were atypical presentation of disease; trauma, including falls; cognitive and behavioral disorders; emergent intervention modifications; medication management; transitions of care; pain management and palliative care; and effect of comorbid conditions. Conclusions:, The Geriatric Competencies for EM Residents is a consensus document that can form the basis for EM residency curricula and assessment to meet the demands of our aging population. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:316,324 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine [source] Modeling Cooking Time to Inactivate Salmonella in Chicken Leg Quarters Cooked in an Air,Steam Impingement OvenJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 5 2006Tareq M. Osaili ABSTRACT:, Inadequate cooking of poultry products may lead to human foodborne infections. The use of mathematical models that describe heat transfer during cooking of chicken leg quarters may help in developing safer food products and minimizing time for cooking. The objective of this study was to develop regression models that predict cooking time required to reach internal temperatures of 71.1, 73.9, 76.7, and 82.2 °C in chicken leg quarters. Samples that had different weights, thicknesses, and initial internal temperatures were cooked in an air,steam impingement oven at temperature of 232.2 °C, humidity of 60%, and air velocity of 1.4 m/min. A thermocouple probe (type K) connected with a data acquisition system was inserted into the coldest point of each chicken leg quarter. Samples were cooked until they reached an internal temperature higher than 82.2 °C. The collected data of each sample in the data acquisition system were used to develop regression models that depend on sample weight, thickness, and initial temperature in predicting cooking times. Sample weight, thickness, and initial internal temperature had significant effects on the cooking time. The results of these models would be helpful for ready-to-eat poultry processors to meet lethality performance standards, and ensuring the safety and quality of skin on, bone in chicken leg quarters cooked via air,steam impingement ovens. [source] From Theory to Practice: General Trends in Foreign Language Teaching Methodology and Their Influence on Language AssessmentLINGUISTICS & LANGUAGE COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 6 2007Christine Campbell In the late 1970s, language-learning theorists redefined ability in a second or foreign language, emphasizing its communicative aspects. The proficient linguist was one who could function effectively in the four skills of speaking, writing, reading comprehension, and listening comprehension in real-life, not contrived or artificial, contexts. This new paradigm led to change in language-teaching methodology; communicative language teaching became the prevailing approach. From that time through the present, developments in language-teaching methodology have both informed trends in language assessment and been influenced by them. One recent pivotal development has been the creation and implementation of the national standards for foreign language learning. The product of both theorists and practitioners, the standards broadened the concept of ability to include the capacity to perform in 11 standards that fall under five goal areas: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. However, although the original standards describe the content of instruction, they do not specify performance standards for each of the 11 content standards or provide assessments. As a result, the profession has had to rise to the challenge of producing standards-based assessments in K-16. Select state and school district programs have devised model assessments; others are gradually following suit. With the standards as a catalyst, both teaching and testing will undoubtedly continue to evolve in a positive direction. [source] Setting school-level outcome standardsMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 2 2006David T Stern Background, To establish international standards for medical schools, an appropriate panel of experts must decide on performance standards. A pilot test of such standards was set in the context of a multidimensional (multiple-choice question examination, objective structured clinical examination, faculty observation) examination at 8 leading schools in China. Methods, A group of 16 medical education leaders from a broad array of countries met over a 3-day period. These individuals considered competency domains, examination items, and the percentage of students who could fall below a cut-off score if the school was still to be considered as meeting competencies. This 2-step process started with a discussion of the borderline school and the relative difficulty of a borderline school in achieving acceptable standards in a given competency domain. Committee members then estimated the percentage of students falling below the standard that is tolerable at a borderline school and were allowed to revise their ratings after viewing pilot data. Results, Tolerable failure rates ranged from 10% to 26% across competency domains and examination types. As with other standard-setting exercises, standard deviations from initial to final estimates of the tolerable failure rates fell, but the cut-off scores did not change significantly. Final, but not initial cut-off scores were correlated with student failure rates (r = 0.59, P = 0.03). Discussion, This paper describes a method to set school-level outcome standards at an international level based on prior established standard-setting methods. Further refinement of this process and validation using other examinations in other countries will be needed to achieve accurate international standards. [source] Surgical skills training: simulation and multimedia combinedMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 9 2001Roger Kneebone Context Basic surgical skills are needed throughout the medical profession, but current training is haphazard and unpredictable. There is increasing pressure to provide transparency about training and performance standards. There is a clear need for inexperienced learners to build a framework of basic skills before carrying out surgical procedures on patients. Effective learning of a skill requires sustained deliberate practice within a cognitive framework, and simulation offers an opportunity for safe preparation. Objectives This paper presents a new approach to basic surgical skills training, where tuition using a specially designed computer program is combined with structured practice using simulated tissue models. This approach to teaching has evolved from practical experience with surgical skills training in workshops. Methods Pilot studies with 72 first-year medical students highlighted the need for separate programs for teaching and for self-directed learning. The authors developed a training approach in the light of this experience. Subsequent in-depth observational and interview studies examined (a) individual teaching sessions between surgical teachers and learners (five consultant surgeons and five senior house officers) and (b) group teaching sessions with general practitioners (14 participants in three group interviews). Further work has resulted in a self-directed learning program. Conclusions Qualitative analysis of observational and interview data provides strong preliminary support for the effectiveness of this approach. The response of teachers and learners was extremely positive. The combination of information (presented by computer) and practice of psychomotor skill (using simulated tissue models) could be extended to other surgical and practical skills. [source] Setting performance standards for medical practice: a theoretical frameworkMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 5 2001L Southgate Background The assessment of performance in the real world of medical practice is now widely accepted as the goal of assessment at the postgraduate level. This is largely a validity issue, as it is recognised that tests of knowledge and in clinical simulations cannot on their own really measure how medical practitioners function in the broader health care system. However, the development of standards for performance-based assessment is not as well understood as in competency assessment, where simulations can more readily reflect narrower issues of knowledge and skills. This paper proposes a theoretical framework for the development of standards that reflect the more complex world in which experienced medical practitioners work. Methods The paper reflects the combined experiences of a group of education researchers and the results of literature searches that included identifying current health system data sources that might contribute information to the measurement of standards. Conclusion Standards that reflect the complexity of medical practice may best be developed through an ,expert systems' analysis of clinical conditions for which desired health care outcomes reflect the contribution of several health professionals within a complex, three-dimensional, contextual model. Examples of the model are provided, but further work is needed to test validity and measurability. [source] Risk Management in Total System Ship DesignNAVAL ENGINEERS JOURNAL, Issue 4 2000C. F. Barker P.E. ABSTRACT Ships are being designed with an increased emphasis on reduced life cycle costs, obtained through means such as reduced crew size, increased automation, and adoption of commercial practices. Ship cost is closely related to the likelihood and consequence of future events, or risk. Ship designers must have tools to assess and manage risks to obtain cost-effective designs. Risk assumptions were built into prescriptive standards, but performance standards are now being used. Ships systems built to varying degrees of acceptable risk are not cost-effective. Underdesigns and overdesigns will result, and the ship ends up only as strong as its "weakest link." The authors propose that the top-down risk management methodology that is currently used for commercial ships be considered for use by naval ship designers in conjunction with both the traditional ship design spiral and the total systems ship design concept. The IMO-endorsed formal safety assessment (FSA) methodology was designed for marine systems. By adopting the FSA approach the Navy will benefit from existing lessons-learned, and will have a smoother transition into the application of commercial standards when the ship is built. [source] The Declining Talent Pool of GovernmentAMERICAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, Issue 2 2010Torun Dewan We consider a government for which success requires high performance by talented ministers. A leader provides incentives to her ministers by firing those who fail. However, the consequent turnover drains a finite talent pool of potential appointees. The severity of the optimal firing rule and ministerial performances decline over time: the lifetime of an effective government is limited. We relate this lifetime to various factors, including external shocks, the replenishment of the talent pool, and the leader's reputation. Some results are surprising: an increase in the stability of government and the exogenous imposition of stricter performance standards can both shorten the era of effective government, and an increase in the replenishment of the talent pool can reduce incumbent ministers' performance. [source] Lessons from Environmental Regulation for the Nonprofit SectorANNALS OF PUBLIC AND COOPERATIVE ECONOMICS, Issue 3 2002Renee A. Irvin As the third sector's economic and social impact grows worldwide, efforts by governments to regulate the sector have focused on increasing compliance in tax,exempt organizations. This article turns to the environmental sector for guidance, summarizing key characteristics of environmental regulation and noting what strategies are likely to prove useful for application to regulation of nonprofit organizations. The article finds some value in promotion of market,based enforcement schemes, but little value in promulgation of laws specifying governance structures and performance standards by a central authority. The most promising opportunity for improvement of the nonprofit regulatory process involves incorporation of financial incentives into monitoring schemes. [source] Virtual Reality Triage Training Provides a Viable Solution for Disaster-preparednessACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 8 2010Pamela B. Andreatta EdD ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:870,876 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Abstract Objectives:, The objective of this study was to compare the relative impact of two simulation-based methods for training emergency medicine (EM) residents in disaster triage using the Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment (START) algorithm, full-immersion virtual reality (VR), and standardized patient (SP) drill. Specifically, are there differences between the triage performances and posttest results of the two groups, and do both methods differentiate between learners of variable experience levels? Methods:, Fifteen Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) to PGY4 EM residents were randomly assigned to two groups: VR or SP. In the VR group, the learners were effectively surrounded by a virtual mass disaster environment projected on four walls, ceiling, and floor and performed triage by interacting with virtual patients in avatar form. The second group performed likewise in a live disaster drill using SP victims. Setting and patient presentations were identical between the two modalities. Resident performance of triage during the drills and knowledge of the START triage algorithm pre/post drill completion were assessed. Analyses included descriptive statistics and measures of association (effect size). Results:, The mean pretest scores were similar between the SP and VR groups. There were no significant differences between the triage performances of the VR and SP groups, but the data showed an effect in favor of the SP group performance on the posttest. Conclusions:, Virtual reality can provide a feasible alternative for training EM personnel in mass disaster triage, comparing favorably to SP drills. Virtual reality provides flexible, consistent, on-demand training options, using a stable, repeatable platform essential for the development of assessment protocols and performance standards. [source] The Use of Performance-based Remuneration: High versus Low-growth FirmsAUSTRALIAN ACCOUNTING REVIEW, Issue 3 2010Julie Walker This study analyses the CEO remuneration structure and level for 100 Australian-listed entities. Consistent with expectations, it finds that high-growth firms pay their CEOs a greater proportion of performance-based pay, when equity-based rewards only are considered. High-growth firms also place greater reliance on market and/or non-financial performance standards for the award of performance-based pay. The extent to which performance-based remuneration is used as a component of CEO pay is positively associated with firm size and growth options. Other potential determinants of performance-based pay, such as financial performance, are not significantly associated with the use of performance-based remuneration. [source] Teaching and Assessing Procedural Skills Using Simulation: Metrics and MethodologyACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2008Richard L. Lammers MD Abstract Simulation allows educators to develop learner-focused training and outcomes-based assessments. However, the effectiveness and validity of simulation-based training in emergency medicine (EM) requires further investigation. Teaching and testing technical skills require methods and assessment instruments that are somewhat different than those used for cognitive or team skills. Drawing from work published by other medical disciplines as well as educational, behavioral, and human factors research, the authors developed six research themes: measurement of procedural skills; development of performance standards; assessment and validation of training methods, simulator models, and assessment tools; optimization of training methods; transfer of skills learned on simulator models to patients; and prevention of skill decay over time. The article reviews relevant and established educational research methodologies and identifies gaps in our knowledge of how physicians learn procedures. The authors present questions requiring further research that, once answered, will advance understanding of simulation-based procedural training and assessment in EM. [source] | ||||||||||||||||