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Urgent Attention (urgent + attention)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	33%

Selected Abstracts

Getting the biodiversity intactness index right: the importance of habitat degradation data

GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 11 2006
MATHIEU ROUGET
Abstract Given high-level commitments to reducing the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, there is a pressing need to develop simple and practical indicators to monitor progress. In this context, a biodiversity intactness index (BII) was recently proposed, which provides an overall indicator suitable for policy makers. The index links data on land use with expert assessments of how this impacts the population densities of well-understood taxonomic groups to estimate current population sizes relative to premodern times. However, when calculated for southern Africa, the resulting BII of 84% suggests a far more positive picture of the state of wild nature than do other large-scale estimates. Here, we argue that this discrepancy is in part an artefact of the coarseness of the land degradation data used to calculate the BII, and that the overall BII for southern Africa is probably much lower than 84%. In particular, based on two relatively inexpensive, ground-truthed studies of areas not generally regarded as exceptional in terms of their degradation status, we demonstrate that Scholes and Biggs might have seriously underestimated the extent of land degradation. These differences have substantial bearing on BII scores. Urgent attention should be given to the further development of cost-effective ground-truthing methods for quantifying the extent of land degradation in order to provide reliable estimates of biodiversity loss, both in southern Africa and more widely. [source]

Review of Policies and Guidelines on Infant Feeding in Emergencies: Common Ground and Gaps

DISASTERS, Issue 2 2001
Andrew Seal
Recent crises in regions where exclusive breastfeeding is not the norm have highlighted the importance of effective policies and guidelines on infant feeding in emergencies. In 1993, UNICEF compiled a collection of policy and guideline documents relating to the feeding of infants in emergency situations. In June 2000 Save the Children, UK, UNICEF and the Institute of Child Health undertook a review of those documents, updating the list and identifying the common ground that exists among the different policies. The review also analysed the consistency of the policy framework, and highlighted important areas where guidelines are missing or unclear. This article is an attempt to share more widely the main issues arising from this review. The key conclusions were that, in general, there is consensus on what constitutes best practice in infant feeding, however, the lack of clarity in the respective responsibilities of key UN agencies (in particular UNICEF, UNHCR and WFP) over issues relating to co-ordination of activities which affect infant-feeding interventions constrains the implementation of systems to support best practice. Furthermore, the weak evidence base on effective and appropriate intervention strategies for supporting optimal infant feeding in emergencies means that there is poor understanding of the practical tasks needed to support mothers and minimise infant morbidity and mortality. We, therefore, have two key recommendations: first that the operational UN agencies, primarily UNICEF, examine the options for improving co-ordination on a range of activities to uphold best practice of infant feeding in emergencies; second, that urgent attention be given to developing and supporting operational research on the promotion of optimal infant-feeding interventions. [source]

Patterns and correlates of substance use amongst juvenile detainees in New South Wales 1989,99

DRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 1 2003
JAN COPELAND
Abstract In the decade 1989,99 there have been significant changes in the patterns of substance use in the Australian community. Juvenile offenders have been a sentinel population of these emerging trends. The social and personal costs associated with adolescent substance use, especially where it leads to increased criminal offending requires urgent attention. This study was a replication of the 1989 and 1994 surveys of young people in detention in New South Wales, Australia. The 300 voluntary participants from nine detention centres had a similar demographic profile to participants of the previous surveys. They were predominantly male (90%) with a mean age of 16.5 years and an over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander peoples. The patterns of lifetime alcohol and tobacco use were stable over the decade, with particular increases in amphetamine, opioid and cocaine use since 1994. The more concerning pattern of at least weekly substance use revealed significant increases in cannabis, opioid and cocaine use since 1994, but a significant decrease in the frequent use of alcohol. This study also reports on high levels of negative health and psychosocial consequences of substance use, including overdose, among this group. High levels of self-reported depression and suicidal behaviours, family and gender issues are also discussed. Encouragingly, there was a relatively high level of self-recognized treatment need for substance use and mental health problems among the sample. This highlights further the growing need for the development and dissemination of novel interventions that harness this willingness and actively engage, motivate and maintain these young people in accessible, appropriate and effective interventions. [source]

Treatments for Patients With Dual Diagnosis: A Review

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 4 2007
Quyen Q. Tiet
Background: Comorbid substance use and mental illness is prevalent and often results in serious consequences. However, little is known about the efficacy of treatments for patients with dual diagnosis. Methods: This paper reviews both the psychosocial and medication treatments for those diagnosed with a substance-related disorder and one of the following disorders: (a) depression, (b) anxiety disorder, (c) schizophrenia, (d) bipolar disorder, (e) severe mental illness, and (f) nonspecific mental illness. We made no restriction of study design to include all published studies, due to the dearth of studies on treatments of patients with dual diagnosis. Results: Fifty-nine studies were identified (36 randomized-controlled trials; RCT). Limited number of studies, especially RCTs, have been conducted within each comorbid category. This review did not find treatments that had been replicated and consistently showed clear advantages over comparison condition for both substance-related and other psychiatric outcomes. Conclusions: Although no treatment was identified as efficacious for both psychiatric disorders and substance-related disorder, this review finds: (1) existing efficacious treatments for reducing psychiatric symptoms also tend to work in dual-diagnosis patients, (2) existing efficacious treatments for reducing substance use also decrease substance use in dually diagnosed patients, and (3) the efficacy of integrated treatment is still unclear. This review provides a critique of the current state of the literature, identifies the directions for future research on treatment of dual-diagnosis individuals, and calls for urgent attention by researchers and funding agencies to conduct more and more methodologically rigorous research in this area. [source]

The impact of downstream refinery concerns on the international oil market

OPEC ENERGY REVIEW, Issue 4 2004
OPEC Secretariat
This article looks at the difficulties experienced by the international oil market in 2004, in the context of the heavy pressure that has been put on stability and prices by downstream refinery problems, even though the market has remained well-supplied with crude. It notes the efforts OPEC has made to maintain a reasonable market balance, in particular by accelerating the implementation of production expansion plans to increase the excess supply cushion. But it seems that, along with a tight market for light sweet crude oil, problems in the downstream sector will remain major upside risks for the market in 2005, risks that require urgent attention. [source]

Green light for greener supply

BUSINESS ETHICS: A EUROPEAN REVIEW, Issue 4 2002
Lutz Preuss
The supply chain management function is currently undergoing a dramatic change: it is adopting an increasingly strategic role. However, this growing financial importance is matched in only a handful of exemplary companies by a greater contribution to environmental protection initiatives in the supply chain. This paper explores some of the obstacles to greater supply chain management involvement in environmental protection and offers suggestions for greener supply. At a personal level, the gap between public opinion on the environment and managerial values needs to be closed, and the support offered by management education and by professional bodies needs to be improved. Within the organisation, the reward structure for supply chain managers needs to move away from narrow economic criteria. Greener supply would also benefit from a larger supply chain management role in corporate strategy making; the function could even be offered a seat on the Board of Management. Changes to the mode of supply chain management, including improvements to the information flow on environmental issues, the decision,making tools used in the face of complex environmental challenges and novel approaches to supply chain management need to receive urgent attention. [source]