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The idea of Open Government, centered on the pillars of transparency, collaboration and participation, has been embedded in many governments to strengthen the creation of democratic governments in accordance with the demands that are immersed in information societies today and that act based on to the principles of accountability, transparency and access to information of general interest. In this sense, through a documentary methodology, the objective of the article is to theoretically describe the influence of Open Government framed governance and sustainable development. Public administration in today's world demands flexibility, creativity, effectiveness, efficiency, participation, cooperation and co-responsibility. Open government is transversal to the 2030 Agenda, because SDG 16 proposes to configure a new public governance framework and a renewed state architecture that allow the promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, facilitate access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.
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Background: Remote patient monitoring (RPM) has been increasingly adopted over the last decade, with the COVID-19 pandemic fostering its rapid development. As RPM implementation is recognised as complex and highly demanding in terms of resources and processes, there are multiple challenges in providing RPM in an integrated logic. Methods: To examine the structural elements that are relevant for implementing RPM integrated care, a scoping review was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, leveraging a search strategy that combines terms relative to (1) conceptual models and real-life initiatives;(2) RPM;and (3) care integration. Results: 28 articles were included, covering nine conceptual models and 19 real-life initiatives. Eighteen structural elements of RPM integrated care implementation were identified among conceptual models, defining a structure for assessing real-life initiatives. 78.9% of those initiatives referred to at least ten structural elements, with patient education and self-monitoring promotion, multidisciplinary core workforce, ICTs (information and communications technologies) and telemonitoring (TM) devices, and health indicators measurement being present in all studies, and therefore being core elements to the design of RPM initiatives. Conclusion: RPM goes far beyond technology, with underlying processes and involved actors playing a central role in care provision. The structural elements identified can guide RPM implementation and promote maturity in adoption. Future research may focus on assessing design completeness, evaluating impacts, and analysing related financial arrangements.
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This book chapter aims to analyze the impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic on the tourism sector in Juiz de Fora (Brazil) based on the perspective of organizational ecology. The main argument developed here is that the pandemic has imposed a new condition over all the existing firms through two main forms: 'selecting' the survival firms through an extreme and severe scarceness of resources by a long period, and then, acting over the remaining firms imposing them a diverse set of strategies and actions to 'adapt' themselves to the 'new conditions. A field research was conducted between October 2020 and August 2021 focusing on the inter-organizational relationship among some important structural components of the tourism supply chain (lodging, food, travel agencies, cultural equipment, and transportation firms). Methodologically, a case study method was used to guide the mixed research, with a random but not stochastic sample of 66 firms, whose data were analyzed qualitatively by Content Analysis and quantitatively by Descriptive Statistics. The results show that 15% of the firms have closed the operations [selection variable] due to the pandemic;all remaining firms needed to adapt themselves in terms of legal compliance (restrictive laws), managerial practices (human resources and labor routines) and strategies (new technologies and new markets) [adaptation variable];also, all of the remaining firms have kept their business in online mode, total or partially, even in the current period of pandemic decline [retention variable]. We conclude that all companies needed to reinforce their attention on the external environmental impositions to a greater or lesser degree. © 2023 Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
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This study verified the influence of the addition of castanets almond flour (Terminalia catappa L.) in the fermentation process of bread, analyzing attributes such as volume, weight, color, and flavor. The actions were coordinated remotely, in a domestic environment, in the city of Fortaleza (Ceara, Brazil) due to the restrictions caused by the pandemic of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). About 2 kg of castanets were collected and the processing process included washing, pulp extraction, drying, roasting, and endocarp breaking. The ingredients were placed in a bowl and homogenized until completely incorporated, following the process of kneading, resting, kneading, shaping, fermentation and cooking. For the study, the evaluation was carried out in quadruplicate, with four samples of each dough, these being named Basic Bread (PB) and Chestnut Bread (PC). The dough showed growth between minutes 0 to 60, however, there was a regression between minutes 90 to 120. It is possible to observe that the dough reached its peak of fermentation between 30 and 60 minutes. The PB samples showed an external golden color and white crumb caused by the Maillard Reaction, possibly from the added butter, and had small alveoli. The PB sample had a neutral taste but was salty. No interference was observed in the bread fermentation process with the addition of castanets flour.
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The measure of physical isolation adopted during a pandemic affected the daily routine of the whole world, including in the sports environment. Therefore, the study sought to compare the coping strategies used by Paralympic boccia athletes during the pandemic period. The sample consisted of 43 athletes (30 men and 13 women) aged 29.95-11,76 years. To identify and measure coping strategies, the ACSI-28 (athletic coping skills inventory) questionnaire was used in its version adapted to Portuguese and added to an electronic form. In data analysis, normality was verified by the Shapiro-Wilk test. After that, all inferential comparison analyzes were measured via nonparametric statistical tests with paired post-hoc DSCF tests. Thus, the results showed that there were significant differences between comparisons in terms of experience, "+10 years", "5 to 10 years", and "1 to 3 years" on the subscales "goals and mental preparation" (6.00+or-1.75 vs 5+or-1.50 vs 5+or-1.50;p<0.05;ES: 0.26) and "trainability" (9.00+or-3.25 vs 6.00+or-0.500 vs 8.00+or-3.00;p<0.05;ES: 0.19). More and less experienced athletes in the boccia modality showed superiority in facing the pandemic period, as they obtained better indices in the "goals and mental preparation and trainability" dimensions of coping strategies compared to their peers with less experience.
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There is an ongoing debate in Brazil about the impact of the new corona virus pandemic on Brazilian education. The institutional and political crisis that revolved around the existence of the virus in the first months of the pandemic provided a national atmosphere of conflict between the federal, state and municipal governments, which resulted in an asymmetric institutional behavior in the educational sector, across the country, regarding the dialectic between education and illness. The present research proposes to analyze the experience of implementing non-face-to-face teaching in a municipal school in Bahia in the first pandemic year (2020), from two axes: (1) the educational challenges provided by the new corona virus pandemic and (2) the specificities of the student body in the learning process in the first pandemic year. The survey results indicate that political disputes around the covid-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the educational sector, providing an institutional imbalance in the actions of the secretariat and school unit. As well as the student's educational experience, it was hampered due to the inequalities increase in the municipality and educational difficulties related to technology.
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Objective: To analyze the levels of Quality of Life in Compulsory Telework during the coronavirus pandemic, of Brazilian public servants from the perceptions between women and men and in segmented profiles: women and men with and without children;women with and without children.Theoretical framework: Quality of Life in Compulsory Telework, whose theoretical model is composed of five dimensions: Teleworker Activities;Telework Management;Technological Support;Physical Conditions of Work;and Overload resulting from Compulsory Telework.Methodology: Data were obtained through electronic form with 5,695 servers from nine Brazilian public institutions and analyzed through descriptive and variance analysis.Results: The results showed satisfactory levels of Quality of Life in Compulsory Telework, with the exception of issues related to work overload. When comparing the perception between the groups, significant differences were identified between women and men with and without children related to the management of telework, more specifically, regarding interruptions and the conflict between work, rest and leisure. Th e group of women with and without children showed significant differences in terms of telecommuting activities.Originality: This article presents an innovative perspective, as it reveals, in addition to the different perceptions between genders, results with expressive variances between the same gender and, also, arising from the family configuration, with regard to Quality of Life in Compulsory Telework in organizations public services.Theoretical and practical contributions: In addition to the gender perspective, the perception of Quality of Life in Compulsory Telework may differ according to the configuration of the family structure, expressed by less satisfactory levels in families with children, which requires managers to propose practices to promote Quality of Life in Telework that reduce or eliminate the sources of perceived discomfort, observing the specificities between genders and within the same gender.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has awakened latent reflections on the WHO's normative and institutional capacities to respond to pandemics, prompting the international community to rethink alternatives to prevent the reoccurrence of a similar crisis. To this end, this article enumerates suggestions to improve existing mechanisms in the global health governance system, as well as new proposals resulting from a normative and institutional reform of the WHO.
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In March 2020, COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization, which led to a series of recommendations regarding personal hygiene, among which, the use of alcohol 70% as hand sanitizers. Due to the great demand for this product, it became scarce and the regulatory agencies made the legislation for production by some industries, manipulation pharmacies, and laboratories more flexible. This situation promoted the commercialization of alcohol-based products within concentrations outside of the limits, compromising their efficiency. Therefore, this is important that these products are submitted to rigorous quality control to avoid harm issues to human health. However, ANVISA does not specify an official method for monitoring alcohol 70%, especially when impurities are present. Within this context, the present work aims to present the use of the classic technique, such as the gas chromatography, as well some alternative analytical methods applied to alcohol 70% determination, taking into account literature reports published in the last two pandemic years.
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Credit unions are exposed to credit risk like any other financial institution and this risk is defined as the possibility that the borrower does not fulfill his obligations with the cooperative, that is, of not honoring the commitment to pay his debts. To mitigate this risk, cooperatives make provisions for loan losses (PCLD), in order to cover this type of risk that is inherent to their operations. At the beginning of 2020, a strong public health crisis, caused by a seriously contagious pandemic with a high degree of mortality, which became known as the COVID-19 pandemic, impacted the entire economy, with serious social and economic consequences. These events caused a financial crisis that spread quickly, affecting the income of people, companies and the government, the latter having to help the first two through social and financial programs. Based on this context, this study aimed to analyze whether PCLD increased after the onset of the economic and health crisis in the 99 largest credit unions in Brazil, and these organizations were selected according to their total assets. The credit portfolios and PCLD of these organizations were analyzed from 2018 to 2021. This research is of a quantitative nature and its data collection took place through the BACEN database. The results pointed out that during the economic crisis, there was a significant and accentuated change in the PCLD of the cooperative institutions analyzed, but this change has been noticed since 2018, the beginning of the observations of this study.
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The economic and social impact that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can bring is undeniable since high numbers of active workers in production and service provision are being contaminated. In addition, those infected may have long-term sequelae, impairing their functional capacity, and consequently, their work activities. It considers that intervention in cardiopulmonary rehabilitation is of great importance, especially in the recovery stage, and should be carried out mainly with the aim of improving dyspnea, severe muscle weakness, and fatigue, to promote functional independence, and increase quality of life. Based on the limitations demonstrated in COVID-19 survivors, we developed a protocol based on the acronym #EASIER, which is divided into six phases. Such a study will be able to early identify the impact of COVID-19 in different severities as well as provide subsidies to guide physiotherapists early, through the correct prescription of rehabilitative interventional measures. © 2023 Heart and Mind ;Published by Wolters Kluwer - Medknow.
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Cattle is one of the main items in the Brazilian productive guideline and an important export product. During the covid-19 pandemic, the price of beef occupied a prominent position in agricultural sector analyzes due to the prices increases. The objective of this research is to observe the national production behavior, exports, and domestic supply. Therefore, a domestic supply forecast was made for January 2021 to December 2022 (24 months). Based on the results obtained, it was found that the beefs supply available to the Brazilian market will not present an expressive upward behavior that compensates the evolution in beef export to international markets. Thus, a shift in the price of beef in the domestic market to higher levels may be observed.
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Background: In order to propose a destination for the bottom ash generated from biomass burning, its morphology, functional groups and mineral phases were studied. Dipyrone has been extensively used as an antipyretic, increased due to cases of COVID-19, and due to excretion by urine, incorrect disposal and industrial effluents has been destined to wastewater, being harmful to human and animal life. The present study proposes using biomass ash for the adsorption of dipyrone. Result(s): The characterization of biomass ash shows a sufficient surface area size for adsorption, and a mainly amorphous structure with some peaks of quartz, calcite and other mineral phases. The results show that the kinetic model which best describes the adsorption is the pseudo-first-order model. The Langmuir model best fits at 25 degreeC, and the Freundlich model best describes the adsorption at 35 and 45 degreeC. The thermodynamic parameters indicated that the process is endothermic with a maximum adsorptive capacity of 65.27 mg g-1. In addition, the adsorption is spontaneous, disordered and chemical. The ionic strength study reveals that the adsorbent is promising for real effluent treatment and there is evidence that electrostatic interaction is not the primary adsorptive mechanism, agreeing with the result obtained from pH testing. The proposed mechanism for dipyrone removal involves hydrogen bonds, pi bonds and electron donor-acceptor complex. Conclusion(s): The results are promising in comparison with recent literature and solve two environmental problems: biomass bottom ash disposal and pharmaceutical removal in aqueous medium. The ash may be regarded as a low-cost and environmentally friendly adsorbent. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).
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After the economic shock caused by COVID-19, with relevant effects on both the supply and demand for energy assets, there was greater interest in understanding the relationships between key energy prices. In order to contribute to a deeper understanding of energy price relationships, this paper analyzes the dynamics between the weekly spot prices of oil, natural gas and benchmark ethanol in the US markets. The analysis period started on 23 June 2006 and ended on 10 June 2022. This study used the DMCA cross-correlation coefficient in a dynamic way, using sliding windows. Among the main results, it was found that: (i) in the post-pandemic period, oil and natural gas were not correlated, in both short- and long-term timescales;and (ii) ethanol was negatively associated with natural gas in the most recent post-pandemic period, especially in short-term scales. The results of the present study are potentially relevant for both market and public agents regarding investment diversification strategies and can aid public policies due to the understanding of the interrelationship between energy prices. © 2023 by the authors.
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Background: Residual disease (RD) following neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in early HER2- negative breast cancer (BC) remains an unmet medical need. However, no therapies to date have tested their activity directly in chemo-resistant RD. Here, we hypothesized that combining an oncolytic virus such as T-VEC with atezolizumab may offer clinical benefit in patients (pts) with RD after standard NAC. To our knowledge, PROMETEO is the first trial that examines the activity of immunotherapy in pts with RD prior to surgery. Method(s): PROMETEO (NCT03802604) is a singlearm, open-label, multicenter phase II trial. Women with triple-negative BC (TNBC) or hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative (HR+/HER2-) BC with baseline (i.e., before NAC) ki67 >= 20% were eligible. RD was confirmed with a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showing a tumor diameter >= 10 mm and a core-biopsy detecting the presence of invasive cells. Before surgery, T-VEC was administered intratumorally on week 1 (106 pfu/mL), then in week 4 and every 2 weeks thereafter (108 pfu/mL) for 4 injections. Atezolizumab (840 mg) was administered intravenously every 2 weeks for 4 infusions, starting at week 4. Surgery was performed in < 3 weeks after completing the treatment. The primary objective was to evaluate the efficacy of the combination, measured by the rate of residual cancer burden (RCB) class 0/1 at surgery. Tumor samples collected at 5 timepoints (before NAC, during screening period, after first dose of T-VEC, after first dose of T-VEC and atezolizumab and at surgery) were mandatory to assess gene expression, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), immune cells PD-L1 IHC (SP142), tumor mutational burden (TMB) by FoundationOne and other translational endpoints. Result(s): Between Dec 2018 to Feb 2022, 28 pts were enrolled: 20 pts with HR+/HER2- disease and 8 pts with TNBC. Median age was 47 (range 31-71) and 71% of pts were premenopausal. At diagnosis before NAC, clinical stage II disease represented 60.7%, cN+ 60.7%, median Ki-67 was 37.5% (range 20%-95%), high TILs (>=10%) 37%, median TMB was 3 (0-19) and only 1 of 27 pts (3.7%) had a PD-L1-positive tumor. After NAC, mean tumor size by MRI was 28.3 mm (10-93). Two pts discontinued from the trial (1 withdrawal of consent and 1 COVID infection). The completion of 5 cycles of treatment was achieved by 73% of pts. The overall RCB-0/1 rate was 25% (7 of 28, 95% IC 10.7 - 44.9%), all with RCB 0 (pathologic complete response [pCR]). The pCR rate was 30% in HR+/HER2- disease and 12.5 % in TNBC. Radiological response by MRI was achieved by 3 of 28 pts (10.7%). Interestingly, none of the 7 pts with a pCR had radiological response (stable disease n=5, progressive disease [PD] n=2). Six pts (21.4%) had radiological PD and had RCB 2/3. Overall, 27 (96%) patients had at least one treatment-emergent adverse event (TEAE) of any grade. Most common grade 1 or 2 AEs were fever (11 pts, 39.3%), ALT increased (9 pts, 32.1%), AST increased (8 pts, 28.6%), arthralgia (6 pts, 21.4%) and anemia (6 pts, 21.4%). Grade 3 reversible neutropenia occurred in 1 patient. Across all pts, significant increases (p< 0.001) in TILs, immune genes and immune PDL1+ cells were observed after 1 dose of TVEC, 1 dose of the combination and at surgery. Intrinsic subtype changes at surgery occurred in 73.1% of cases, mostly (46.1%) Luminal A/B converting to Normal-like. At surgery, 19 of 26 (73.1%) of tumors were PDL1+. Conclusion(s): Two months of T-VEC in combination with atezolizumab induced a pCR in a subgroup of pts with chemoresistant HER2- breast cancer. This effect is probably related to the immune activation provoked by the combined treatment. Interestingly, a high discrepancy was observed between the presurgical radiological imaging and the actual surgical pathological report. Pre-operative window-ofopportunity trials in this context might provide important clues regarding the activity of novel treatment strategies.
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The aim of the article is to present preliminary research results on the role of institutional representatives of the justice system during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.It is assumed that the existing approaches to analyze the judicial system through surveys and censuses through official sources is unable to identify hidden figures that involve domestic violence. Specifically, victims were for some reason unable to access the services of the justice system. Consequently, the research team focused on the minutes of the meetings held by the State Coordination of Women in Situations of Domestic Violence (Coem) for documentary analysis. It is an agency of the Court of Justice of Rio de Janeiro which, through periodic meetings, acted strategically in the responses to the Covid-19 pandemic in identifying problems of access to justice and for the integration of a coping network. As a methodological procedure, we used situational analysis to codify and systematize the results found: identification of barriers to access, the way in which institutions act. We observe that this methodology, based on case-by-case and inductive procedures, can be an important tool for institutions to deal with the topic. We also seek to bring reflections on the use of quantitative and qualitative techniques in empirical research involving violence against women. © 2023 Revista de Estudos Empiricos em Direito. All rights reserved.
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Primary healthcare (PHC) is a fundamental pillar in a health system, and its role has only been enhanced in the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence of COVID-19 required health systems and, in particular, PHCs to develop a constant capacity to adapt and resist adversity. Therefore, it was considered important to identify innovative measures and thus the experience of a family health unit (USF) in Portugal – USF Arte Nova (USFAN) was reported. After carrying out a systematic review of the literature and interviews with the Presidents of the Clinical and Health Councils of five Health Centre Groupings, the measures identified were gathered and compared to the ones carried out by USFAN. Subsequently, the study identified the measures considered to be truly original executed by the health unit. Between the measures presented, the use of an access prioritization score was highlighted, as were daily briefing regarding the management of resources and equipment, qualification of the use of personal protective equipment, the project that aimed to optimize the use of paper;the use of a drive-through method to update the National Vaccination Program;and the daily training and sharing of information about COVID-19. In light of the current pandemic, innovative practices and tools have been created and carried out by the healthcare professionals in response to the growing needs of the population. This shows the resilience of these professionals and constitutes an opportunity to share and implement these tools in other healthcare facilities highlighting the continuing chance of improving. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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The current situation of healthcare units is characterised by the increasing cost of providing the respective care, the consequent deterioration of the financial situation, and the complicated and time-consuming processes. Together with rising demand, they may become factors contributing to a decrease in service demand. Due to this situation, more efficient and effective logistics and supply chain management are widely recognised as one of the main areas for improvement. To provide insight on which areas to improve, several objectives were looked at in this work, including the analysis of the methods and criteria for the selection of medicines in hospital pharmacies, the definition of obstacles to the rational management of stocks, and the analysis of historical data to forecast future demand for a Portuguese public hospital. The study revealed that some of the 1346 products present on the pharmacy's ERP do not have sufficient historical data to create an accurate forecast. In this context, and with a service level of 95%, 41% of products have a stock higher than what should be the maximum stock, amounting to approximately € 147.908.87 in fixed assets, and 11% of products were at risk of being out of stock at the time. The importance of the evolution of the core information system of hospitals was at stake, ensuring the technological sustainability of the ongoing digital transformation, alignment with ICT rationalisation measures, improvement of customer service, and improvement of the quality of information available to the user. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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This paper aims to investigate how past decision-making experiences can improve future decisionmaking. Nine semi-structured interviews were conducted with profitable professional Poker players. The results point out that it is the knowledge background of the decision-maker that makes him make sense of the situations he experiences. The research findings allowed the identification of three mechanisms that facilitate and make future decisions faster and more appropriate based on past experiences: (1) memory, (2) reflection, and (3) tools and analytical approach. The research contributes by showing evidence that, when supported by analytical tools, decision-makers can improve the quality and speed of the decision-making process. For organizations and supply chains, the paper highlights the importance of recognizing patterns based on the past to make sense of the future. For operations management, in events like COVID-19, companies can take advantage of memory to enact over unprecedented scenarios, prevent disruptions, and recover. © 2023 IGI Global. All rights reserved.
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Introduction: According to a substantial body of research, electrolyte abnormalities are a common manifestation in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients and are associated with adverse outcomes. This study aimed to investigate electrolyte imbalances in COVID-19 patients and assess their relation to mortality. Method(s): Adult COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the Security Forces Hospital in Saudi Arabia from June 8th till August 18th, 2020 were enrolled in this retrospective observational study. We examined baseline characteristics, comorbidities, acute organ injuries, medications, and electrolyte levels including sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, bicarbonate, phosphate, and magnesium on ICU admission, as well as every following day of ICU stay, until death or discharge. Patients were stratified according to survival, and differences in variables between groups were compared using Mann-Whitney's U test or Fisher's exact test. Longitudinal electrolyte profiles were modeled using random intercept linear regression models. Result(s): A total of 60 COVID-19 patients were enrolled. Compared to survivors, non-survivors had significantly higher sodium and phosphate on admission and death, higher potassium and magnesium at death, and significantly lower calcium at death. Abnormalities in admission levels of chloride and bicarbonate were also more frequently observed in non-survivors. Furthermore, in the deceased group, we observed a daily increase in potassium and phosphate levels, and a daily decrease in sodium and chloride. Finally, calcium increased in non-survivors over time, however, not as significantly as in the survivor group. Conclusion(s): Admission levels of electrolytes and changes over the course of ICU stay appear to be associated with mortality in COVID-19 patients.Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.