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Increasing Costs (increasing + cost)
Selected AbstractsCompensation costs of work-related back disorders among union carpenters, Washington State 1989,2003AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 8 2009Hester J. Lipscomb PhD Abstract Background We measured resources used to provide medical care and to estimate lost productivity represented by payments for lost work time or impairment for work-related back injuries among a large cohort of union carpenters over 15 years. Methods Using administrative data we identified a cohort of carpenters, their hours worked, their workers' compensation claims and associated costs. After adjustment for inflation and discounting to 2006 dollars, yearly costs for injuries and payment rates based on hours worked were calculated. Using negative binomial regression, dollars paid per claim were modeled based on age, gender, union tenure, and predominant type of work of the carpenter and whether the injury resulted from overexertion or acute trauma. Results Workers' compensation costs for back injuries exceeded $128 million dollars between 1998 and 2003, representing payments of $0.97 for each hour of work. Costs per hour of work declined substantively over time due largely to declining overexertion injury rates. Traumatic injuries, though less common than overexertion injuries, were more expensive. Costs increased with the number of prior back injuries and with increasing age, beginning as early as age 30. Conclusions Increasing costs even among relatively young carpenters likely reflect the heavy nature of their work rather than simply the effects of biological aging. Musculoskeletal back problems remain a common, and consequently costly, source of injury among these carpenters that needs to be addressed through engineering modifications; there are also clearly needs for prevention of the often more costly back injuries associated with acute trauma. Am. J. Ind. Med. 52:587,595, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The J2EE ECperf benchmark results: transient trophies or technology treasures?CONCURRENCY AND COMPUTATION: PRACTICE & EXPERIENCE, Issue 10 2004Paul Brebner Abstract ECperf, the widely recognized industry standard J2EE benchmark, has attracted a large number of results submissions and their subsequent publications. However, ECperf places little restriction on the hardware platforms, operating systems and databases utilized in the benchmarking process. This, combined with the existence of only two primary metrics, makes it difficult to accurately compare the performance of the Application Server products themselves. By mining the full-disclosure archives for trends and correlations, we have discovered that J2EE technology is very scalable both in a scale-up and scale-out manner. Other observed trends include a linear correlation between middle-tier total processing power and throughput, as well as between J2EE Application Server license costs and throughput. However, the results clearly indicate that there is an increasing cost per user with increasing capacity systems and scale-up is proportionately more expensive than scale-out. Finally, the correlation between middle-tier processing power and throughput, combined with results obtained from a different ,lighter-weight' benchmark, facilitates an estimate of throughput for different types of J2EE applications. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Tall Fescue Adaptation to Low Nitrogen Fertilization in Relation to Germplasm Type and Endophyte InfectionJOURNAL OF AGRONOMY AND CROP SCIENCE, Issue 3 2008L. Pecetti Abstract Efficient crop growth with low nitrogen (N) application is becoming a requirement to face the concern on excessive N emission to the environment and the increasing cost of fertilizers. This study compared six natural populations and three improved varieties of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) for dry-matter yield over 4 years under ordinary N fertilization (450 kg ha,1 in the 4 years) and very low N fertilization (only 40 kg ha,1 prior to sowing). Both endophyte-infected (EI) and endophyte-free (EF) forms of each accession were sown. On average, ordinary fertilization implied 30 % higher yield than very low fertilization and the EI germplasm outyielded the corresponding EF germplasm (+4.4 %). Mean yield of improved varieties was higher than that of natural populations under ordinary fertilization (P < 0.05), whereas the two germplasm groups did not differ under very low fertilization. Accession × N fertilization interaction was found among natural populations but not among varieties (P < 0.05). A few natural populations were top-yielding under very low fertilization and may be exploited, possibly in combination with endophyte infection, to select tall fescue varieties with enhanced performance under limited N application. [source] The use of sodium formate for the recovery of precious metals from acidic base metal effluentsJOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 4 2001Herman G Julsing Abstract Zinc was used for the reduction of the platinum group metals (PGMs) in acidic effluents. Due to the increasing cost of zinc, sodium formate was investigated as an alternative reductant. In a base metal-containing acidic effluent, called diethylenetriamine barren, sodium formate was used to precipitate the PGMs. This effluent was the filtrate obtained after a precipitation procedure had been used to remove rhodium and iridium. It was found that pH 1.5 was the optimum starting pH for sodium formate reduction. The pH increased to approximately 4.5 after the addition of sodium formate. The optimum concentration of sodium formate was found to be 30,g,dm,3 at a temperature of 100,°C where the process time was 6,h. Platinum and palladium were the most effectively reduced PGMs, both exhibiting an average precipitation efficiency of greater than 99%. Difficulty was experienced with the precipitation of iridium (average precipitation efficiency of 76%). The precipitated PGMs readily dissolved in hydrochloric acid (6,M) and sodium chlorate (2%). A reduction in costs resulted from the discontinuation of the use of zinc for reduction purposes. An additional advantage was that zinc was no longer introduced into the PGM refinery circuits. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry [source] The Government of Health Care and the Politics of Patient Empowerment: New Labour and the NHS Reform Agenda in EnglandLAW & POLICY, Issue 3 2010KENNETH VEITCH This article considers the issue of patient empowerment in the context of New Labour's proposed reforms to the National Health Service (NHS) in England. Through an exploration of some of the key measures in the government's white paper High Quality Care for All, the article argues for a conceptualization of patient empowerment as a political technique of governing. Patient empowerment, it is contended, can no longer be understood solely as a quantitative phenomenon to be balanced within the doctor-patient relationship. Rather, its deployment by the government as a way of governing health and health care more broadly demands that we consider what political functions,including, importantly, it is argued here, managing the problem of the increasing cost of illness and health care,patient empowerment may be involved in performing. In order to assist in this enquiry, the article draws on some of Michel Foucault's work on the art of governing. It is suggested that his understanding of the neoliberal mode of governing best captures the proposed changes to the NHS and the role patient empowerment plays in their implementation. [source] Price development in important anesthesia and critical care medicine journals in comparison to journals of other disciplinesACTA ANAESTHESIOLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 4 2001J. Boldt Background: In today's climate of financial restrictions, libraries and individual subscribers complain about the price increase of scientific journals. The development in prices of anesthesia/critical care journals was analysed over the past 6 years and compared to prices of some journals of other disciplines. Methods: Important journals in the categories Anesthesiology, Emergency Medicine & Critical Care, Surgery, Medicine (General), and Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems listed in the 1999 Science Citation Index of Journal Citation Report were included and prices for the years 1995 to 2000 were analysed. Results: Increase in prices ranged from +13% to +199%. The mean increase in journal prices was lowest in the category Anesthesiology (+61%), higher in the category Critical Care (+73%), and highest in the category Medicine, General (+101%). Changes in the impact factor (IF) varied widely, ranging from a decrease (Lancet: ,43%; J Neurosurg Anesth: ,44%) to a tremendous increase (e.g. Reg Anesth +165%; Ann Emerg Med +149%). The journals' size (number of articles or pages) did not increase proportionally with the increase in prices. Conclusion: A disproportionate rise in journal prices was seen over the past 6 years. The large increase in cost may have multiple reasons. The rapidly increasing cost of research journals may affect research quality because economic pressure may result in reduction in availibility of information due to cancellation of subscriptions to journals. [source] Comparison of the degradability of poly(lactide) packages in composting and ambient exposure conditionsPACKAGING TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE, Issue 1 2007Gaurav Kale Abstract The adoption of biodegradable polymeric materials is increasing in food and consumer goods packaging applications, due to concerns about the disposal of petroleum-based polymers and the increasing cost of petroleum-based polymer resins. Currently, poly(lactide) (PLA) polymers are the biggest commercially available bio-based polymeric packaging materials. As the main motivation for adopting biopolymers is environmental, there is a need to address the degradability and environmental performance of biodegradable packages. The aim of this study was to investigate and compare the degradation of two commercially available biodegradable packages made of PLA under real compost conditions and under ambient exposure, using visual inspection, gel permeation chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry and thermal gravimetric analysis. A novel technique to study and track the degradability of these packages under real compost conditions was used. Both packages were subjected to composting and ambient exposure conditions for 30 days, and the degradation of the physical properties was measured at 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 15 and 30 days. PLA bottles made of 96% l -lactide exhibited lower degradation than PLA delicatessen (,deli') containers made of 94% l -lactide, mainly due to their highly ordered structure and, therefore, their higher crystallinity. The degradation rate changed as the initial crystallinity and the l -lactide content of the packages varied. Temperature, relative humidity and pH of the compost pile played an important role in the rate of degradation of the packages. First-order degradation kinetics and linear degradation trends were observed for both packages subjected to composting conditions. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Retracted: The manufacturing enterprise diagnostic instrument: A tool for assessment of enterprise system manufacturers,HUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 6 2007Ash Genaidy Small- to medium-size manufacturers constitute the bulk of the U.S. manufacturing sector and are in a dire need of a tool that will help them face the challenges of globalization and increasing costs of manufacturing in the United States. The objectives were to develop and validate a diagnostic tool for manufacturing firms to evaluate their enterprise system performance to eliminate trial-and-error decisions and allow quick and informed actions. A pilot version was developed and tested in a small manufacturer. A revised version was then developed and further tested in another firm. Testing of the tool's pilot version provided invaluable feedback for developing the main tool. When tested in a small manufacturing firm, the results demonstrated management's misalignment and identified the root causes hindering performance. The tool demonstrated a quick and effective way to evaluate the manufacturing system's performance and to develop an aligned improvement action plan to guide the managerial team in devising a winning business strategy. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 17: 521,574, 2007. [source] Prescription drug samples , does this marketing strategy counteract policies for quality use of medicines?JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 4 2003K. E. M. Groves BSc MSc PhD (Cand) Summary Prescription drug samples, as used by the pharmaceutical industry to market their products, are of current interest because of their influence on prescribing, and their potential impact on consumer safety. Very little research has been conducted into the use and misuse of prescription drug samples, and the influence of samples on health policies designed to improve the rational use of medicines. This is a topical issue in the prescription drug debate, with increasing costs and increasing concerns about optimizing use of medicines. This manuscript critically evaluates the research that has been conducted to date about prescription drug samples, discusses the issues raised in the context of traditional marketing theory, and suggests possible alternatives for the future. [source] Genetic approaches and technologies for improving the sustainability of livestock production,JOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 9 2004Stephen C Bishop Abstract Livestock production industries worldwide face considerable conflicting challenges and pressures. In developed countries the challenge is to remain sustainable and competitive in the face of declining prices and increasing costs, competition and public pressures. In developing countries the strong increase in demand for livestock products must be met in circumstances where infrastructure is often minimal, there are limitations on inputs and the environment places demands on management and on the adaptive fitness of the livestock. In both situations, solutions to these problems must be sustainable and appropriate, yet be technically feasible, cost-effective and publicly acceptable. This paper summarises the impact of two technologies that will make considerable contributions to sustainable livestock production systems, namely information technology and genetic technologies that utilise naturally occurring genetic variation. Genetic technologies are inherently sustainable owing to the permanent and cumulative nature of genetic change, and range from simple to sophisticated. They include breed choice, within-breed selection and the use of genetic markers linked to gene variants conferring favourable attributes. Breeding goals include increased output, where required, enhanced product quality and increased disease resistance. These goals are illustrated by examples for the hill sheep and pig sectors in the UK and by challenges facing animal health in developing countries. Central to all examples is the gathering, management and interpretation of information, ie information technology, which enables rational genetic and management decisions to be made. Additionally, in all sustainable livestock production systems the maintenance and utilisation of biodiversity will help manage the risks of today as well as the challenges of the future. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry [source] The geographies of crisis: exploring accessibility to health care in CanadaTHE CANADIAN GEOGRAPHER/LE GEOGRAPHE CANADIEN, Issue 3 2002KATHLEEN WILSON There is increasing concern in Canada that the health care system is in a state of crisis. It is argued that reductions in federal government transfers to the provinces have resulted in a health care system characterized by under-funding in key areas and policy decisions based more on provincial fiscal concerns than the health needs of their constituents. Provincial governments have responded to reduced levels in federal funding by undertaking aggressive restructuring tactics such as the closure of hospitals and the deinsuring of medical services from provincial health plans. The end result of this restructuring, as argued by the media, consumer groups and indeed some health researchers, is a state of crisis' (i.e., lower levels of accessibility, long waiting lists, overcrowding in hospitals and increasing costs of medication). One crisis theme often mentioned is that fiscal decisions of various kinds are reducing economic and geographic accessibility, one of the five principles of the Canada Health Act (CHA) that defines the very essence of the Canadian health care system. Using data from the 1998-99 National Population Health Survey (NPHS), this paper explores the extent to which an accessibility crisis exists within the Canadian health care system by examining access to health care services and the barriers encountered in trying to access services in each of the ten provinces. The results show that approximately 6.0 percent of Canadians report access problems, with values ranging from 4.5 percent in Newfoundland to 8.3 percent in Manitoba. Regional variations in barriers to accessing care were also observed. In particular, geographic accessibility appears to be a main barrier to care in Atlantic Canada while economic accessibility emerges as a main barrier to care in Western Canada. We discuss these findings in the context of the current debates on the Canadian health care system ,crisis'. De plus en plus de Canadiens s'inquiétent que leur systéme de soins de santé soit en état de crise. On défend l'idée selon laquelle la réduction des paiements de transfert aux provinces par le gouvernement fédéral serait responsable de l'état d'un systeme de santé caractérisé par un sous-financement dans les domaines-clés et des décisions politiques de santé basées, non pas sur les besoins des membres de la société canadienne, mais sur la fiscalité provinciale. Les gouvernements provinciaux ont réagi à la réduction du financement fédéral par une tactique de restructuration agressive (fermeture d'hôpitaux et retrait de services médicaux des programmes d'assurance de santé provinciaux). Selon les médias, les groupes de consommateurs et même les chercheurs en soins de santé, cette restructuration a eu pour effet un système en état de ,crise' (diminution de l'aecès aux services, longues fetes d'attente, hôpitaux surchargés, augmentation des coûts des médicaments etc). Un des thèmes récurrent est celui des décisions flscales de toutes sortes qui entraînent une baisse de l'accessibilité financière et géographique. Cette accessibilité est pourtant un des cinq principes de la Loi canadienne sur la santé définissant l'essence même du système de santé au Canada. Utilisant les données tirèes de l'Enquête nationale sur la santé de la population, 1998-99 et examinant l'accès aux services de santé et les obstacles rencontrés dans les 10 provinces canadiennes, cet article évalue dans quelle mesure une crise d'accessibilité existe au sein du système de santé canadien. Les résultats démontrent qu'environ 6.0 pour cent des Canadiens ont rencontré des problèmes d'accessibilité, avec des variantes allant de 4.5 pour cent à Terre-Neuve jusqu'à 8.3 pour cent au Manitoba. On observe aussi des variantes régionales dans les obstacles rencontrés. L'accessibilité géographique en particulier semble un obstacle mqjeur dans les régions de l'Atlantique, alors que l'accessibilite financière semble être un obstacle majeur dans l'Ouest du Canada. Ces résultats sont présentés dans le contexte des débats actuels sur l'existence dune, ,crise' dans le système de santé au Canada. [source] Hand-Assisted Laparoscopic Living-Donor Nephrectomy as an Alternative to Traditional Laparoscopic Living-Donor NephrectomyAMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 10 2002Joseph F. Buell The benefits of laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy (LDN) are well described, while similar data on hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy (HALDN) are lacking. We compare hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy with open donor nephrectomy. One hundred consecutive hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy (10/98,8/01) donor/recipient pairs were compared to 50 open donor nephrectomy pairs (8/97, 1/00). Mean donor weights were similar (179.6 ± 40.8 vs. 167.4 ± 30.3 lb; p =,NS), while donor age was greater among hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy (38.2 ± 9.5 vs. 31.2 ± 7.8 year; p <,0.01). Right nephrectomies was fewer in hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy [17/100 (17%) vs. 22/50 (44%); p <,0.05]. Operative time for hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy (3.9 ± 0.7 vs. 2.9 ± 0.5 h; p <,0.01) was longer; however, return to diet (6.9 ± 2.8 vs. 25.6 ± 6.1 h; p <,0.01), narcotics requirement (17.9 ± 6.3 vs. 56.3 ± 6.4 h; p <,0.01) and length of stay (51.7 ± 22.2 vs. 129.6 ± 65.7 h; p <,0.01) were less than open donor nephrectomy. Costs were similar ($11 072 vs. 10 840). Graft function and 1-week Cr of 1.4 ± 0.9 vs. 1.6 ± 1.1 g/dL (p =,NS) were similar. With the introduction of HALDN, our laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy program has increased by 20%. Thus, similar to traditional laparoscopic donor nephrectomy, hand-assisted laparoscopic living-donor nephrectomy provides advantages over open donor nephrectomy without increasing costs. [source] Varying Ecological Quality Influences the Probability of Polyandry in White-handed Gibbons (Hylobates lar) in ThailandBIOTROPICA, Issue 4 2009Tommaso Savini ABSTRACT Although members of the family Hylobatidae are known to be monogamous, adult white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar) at Khao Yai National Park, Thailand, also show multimale groups and polyandry. A need for more than one male to successfully raise offspring cannot explain the occurrence of polyandry in these territorial primates, because direct paternal care is absent in this species. We hypothesize that polyandry is primarily related to costs/benefits for males of cooperatively defending a female and/or resources; our prediction was that polyandry would become more frequent with increasing costs of female/resource defense. We measured the ecological quality of seven gibbon home ranges over a 3-yr period (2001,2003) to investigate how resource availability affected the probability of polyandry, and found a significant negative relationship between home range quality and home range size. Larger home ranges were of lower quality. As predicted, groups living on larger, poorer home ranges also experienced longer periods of polyandry. In forest areas of comparatively low quality, acquiring and maintaining a large home range that includes enough resources for a female to reproduce steadily may surpass a single male's capacity. Our model of cooperative male polyandry was supported by preliminary data of shared territorial defense and access to the female. However, interaction proportions were strongly skewed, and female's primary male partners monopolized grooming and mating. Nevertheless, a primary male on a large territory may benefit from the presence of a secondary male with aid in territorial/female defense, whereas a secondary male may gain by avoiding high dispersal costs. [source] Can we face the challenge of expanding use of intravenous immunoglobulin in neurology?ACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 5 2010I. Elovaara Elovaara I, Hietaharju A. Can we face the challenge of expanding use of intravenous immunoglobulin in neurology? Acta Neurol Scand: 2010: 122: 309,315. © 2010 The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 Blackwell Munksgaard. The use of high-dose polyclonal intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in the treatment of autoimmune neurological diseases has expanded over the last decade. Based on controlled clinical trials IVIG can be considered currently as the first-line treatment in Guillain-Barré syndrome, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy and multifocal motor neuropathy, and it may be used as a rescue therapy in worsening myasthenia gravis. IVIG is a second-line therapy in dermatomyositis, stiff-person syndrome and pregnancy-associated or postpartum relapses of multiple sclerosis. Although the biological efficacy of IVIG is due to multiple effects on the immune system, many mechanisms are still unknown. The awareness of risks and complications of IVIG therapy has increased, but severe side effects are still considered rare. Due to increasing costs of this treatment, careful selection of patients who will benefit from IVIG is extremely important. [source] Best Management Practices and the Production of Good and Bad OutputsCANADIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, Issue 3 2010Pascal L. Ghazalian Agricultural activities simultaneously produce good and bad outputs. A translog cost function is used to evaluate the cost associated with reduction of chemical runoff and how it is influenced by the scale of crop and animal production. The results show that reducing runoff entails increasing costs and that these costs decrease with the level of crop production, but are unaffected by the level of animal production. The estimates of the cost elasticities of Best Management Practices (BMPs) were all positive, but many have large standard errors that imply that the true elasticities can be much lower or much higher. Also, the cost elasticities decrease with the scale of crop production for most BMPs whereas the scale of animal production has the opposite effect for crop rotation and herbicide control practices. Our results reaffirm that there are economies of size in production. L'agriculture produit de bons et de mauvais extrants. Une fonction de coût translog est utilisée pour évaluer les coûts associés à l'amélioration de la qualité de l'eau en réduisant les problèmes de ruissellement et de transfert de nutriments. Nous évaluons comment ces coûts changent avec les niveaux des productions animales et de cultures. Nos résultats indiquent que la réduction des transferts de nutriments est coûteux mais que l'élasticité-coût décroit avec la valeur des cultures produites tout en étant indépendant de l'envergure de la production animale. Les élasticités-coût associés aux pratiques environnementales (PE) sont positives et ont de grandes erreur-types, ce qui veut dire que les vraies élasticités peuvent être beaucoup plus grandes ou plus petites. Les élasticités-coût pour la plupart des PE diminuent avec la production de cultures produit tandis que la taille de la production animale a un effet contraire sur les élasticités pour la rotation de cultures et le contrôle des herbicides. Nos résultats confirment qu'il existe d'importantes économies de taille à exploiter en agriculture. [source] | ||||||||||||||||