Bacterial pathogens and antibiotic resistance patterns in children with urinary tract infection admitted at tertiary hospital in Nepal

Introductions: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a common bacterial infection affecting children. A prompt recognition and accurate antimicrobial management are vital to prevent kidney damage. This study aims to determine the bacterial pathogens and their patterns of antimicrobial resistance in children presenting with UTI. Methods: This was a cross sectional study done at Patan Hospital, Patan Academy of Health Sciences from Nov 2012 to Oct 2016.  There were 88 children between age group of 1 to 14 years  with  culture proven UTI. The bacterial pathogens and antibiotic resistance were analysed. Results: Three most common organisms isolated were E. Coli 60 (68%), Klebsiella species 15(17%) and Proteus 7 (8%). The resistance of E. Coli to ampicillin, ofloxacin, cefotaxime, gentamicin and amikacin were 51 (85%), 49 (82%), 45 (75%), 17 (28%) and 2 (3%) respectively. The resistance to Ampicillin was  Klebsiella species 13 (87%), Proteus  6 (86%) and Enterococcus 3 (60%). Conclusion: The E. Coli was leading bacterial pathogen causing UTI in children, with ampicillin resistance occurring in more than half of these cases. Amikacin and gentamicin had lower antibiotic resistance and can be used for treatment of UTI in children. Keywords: antibiotics resistance, bacterial pathogens, urinary tract infection, UTI in childre

Signal optimization: using signals to mitigate information overload in crowdfunding campaigns

Purpose – This study explores how information volume affects crowdfunding success and identifies the signals – operational transparency, past crowdfunding experience, perceived project authenticity and perceived product quality – that moderate this relationship. The goal is to provide insights into managing information overload and enhancing the probability of funding success in various information volume contexts. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from 2,681 Kickstarter campaigns and analyzed using fixed effects logit regression models. Findings – The study reveals a curved relationship between information volume and funding success, moderated by factors such as operational transparency, crowdfunding experience, project authenticity and product quality. Practical implications – This study provides fund-seekers with essential insights into disseminating information effectively. Originality/value – This study contributes to the literature by elucidating the complex dynamics among information volume, signaling types and crowdfunding success, offering a nuanced understanding of how fund-seekers can optimize their campaigns for better outcomes

Revisiting the concept of waqf : its maintenance, issues and challenges

Philanthropic endowment or wqaf represents a form of long lasting charity with potential profits or benefits meant for the spiritual and economical improvement of the society. This study attempts to revisit the concept of waqf by analysing its literal and technical meanings, its legitimacy in the light of the Qur’an and Sunnah. It also analysis some classical and contemporary views pertaining its conceptualization and traces its origin in the Islamic heritage. Istibdal, exchange of the waqf property, as a means of viability of waqf property and its relevant challenges are also dealt with. This paper is based on library research and use qualitative method. Having analysed, the relevant data the authors arrived at the conclusion that future efforts need to be made to develop the concept of waqf based on maqasid shari’ah while in tandem need to develop a universal and comprehensive vision of shari’ah based on its objectives. Both concepts must be revisited, reviewed, and revised to restore the dynamism of the concept of waqf hence, making it an effective tool for alleviation of the poverty and the distribution of wealth among the different sections of the society in equitable manner

Revisiting the concept of waqf: its maintenance, issues and challenges

Philanthropic endowment or wqaf represents a form of long lasting charity with potential profits or benefits meant for the spiritual and economical improvement of the society. This study attempts to revisit the concept of waqf by analysing its literal and technical meanings, its legitimacy in the light of the Qur’an and Sunnah. It also analysis some classical and contemporary views pertaining its conceptualization and traces its origin in the Islamic heritage. Istibdal, exchange of the waqf property, as a means of viability of waqf property and its relevant challenges are also dealt with. This paper is based on library research and use qualitative method. Having analysed, the relevant data the authors arrived at the conclusion that future efforts need to be made to develop the concept of waqf based on maqasid shari’ah while in tandem need to develop a universal and comprehensive vision of shari’ah based on its objectives. Both concepts must be revisited, reviewed, and revised to restore the dynamism of the concept of waqf hence, making it an effective tool for alleviation of the poverty and the distribution of wealth among the different sections of the society in equitable manner

CEO narcissism and strategic entrepreneurial behaviors: the moderating role of industry environment

Title from PDF of title page viewed August 12, 2021Dissertation advisor: Brian S. AndersonVitaIncludes bibliographical references (pages 87-99)Thesis (Ph.D.)--Henry W. Bloch School of Management. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2021The role of firm-level entrepreneurial behavior in explaining firm performance is well established in the entrepreneurship literature. Scholars can capture firm-level entrepreneurial behavior employing strategic entrepreneurial behavior (SEB) that embodies innovativeness and proactiveness of firms as its dimensions. SEB constitutes one of the strategic outcomes of firms, and Upper echelon theory argues that executives’ characteristics and experience explain strategic actions. This dissertation draws from Upper echelon theory and argues that the psychological attributes of CEOs influence SEB. This dissertation focuses on CEO Narcissism, the escalated self-importance among CEOs. Narcissists seek constant attention and admiration and emphasize personal goals over organizational goals. Therefore, this dissertation argues that while striving to achieve admiration, narcissistic CEOs commit a vast amount of resources in projects entailing innovations and new markets, as they are likely to garner accolades from such projects. Therefore, firms with narcissistic CEOs are likely to exhibit higher SEB than other firms. Though CEOs perform a prominent role in explaining SEB, firm-level entrepreneurship research remains incomplete if researchers ignore the environmental externalities. Therefore, we examine the contingency role of the industry environment on the relationship between CEO narcissism and SEB. Narcissists inherently love to stand out in the crowd, and therefore narcissistic CEOs push their firms to become more entrepreneurial than other firms. However, when the environment shifts from munificent to hostile, while other CEOs curb the entrepreneurial behaviors of their firms, narcissistic CEOs find higher incentives to push their firms to become more entrepreneurial. If they succeed at growing their firms during a hostile environment, stakeholders will likely celebrate them as heroes. In addition, narcissists believe they retain higher control over their surroundings. Therefore, environmental hostility moderates the relationship between CEO narcissism and SEB such that the relationship is stronger in a hostile environment. This dissertation conducts two separate studies to test its hypotheses. Both studies render consistent findings suggesting that, contrary to the hypotheses, (1) CEO narcissism deters SEB and (2) environmental hostility does not moderate the relationship between CEO narcissism and SEB. In other words, firms with narcissistic CEOs exhibit lower SEB, and this relationship remains unaltered with conditions of the environment.  Introduction -- Literature review and research model -- Methodology -- Analyses and results -- Summary, discussion, and conclusio

Assessing psychological and environmental factors influencing the long-term orientation of TMTs

PurposeThis study identifies and examines psychological and environmental factors that influence the long-term orientation of top management teams (TMTs).Design/methodology/approachData on S&amp;P 500 companies from 2011 to 2020 are collected from the Compustat database. Additional variables were measured through content analysis of earnings conference calls. This study used two-stage least squares regression with fixed effects to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. Appropriate diagnostic tests were conducted to ensure validity and eliminate endogeneity.FindingsThe results indicate that a chief executive officer’s (CEO) promotion focus positively and significantly influences the TMT's long-term orientation. However, the influence of prevention focus is statistically insignificant. Furthermore, the results indicate that environmental hostility moderates both relationships.Practical implicationsThe TMT's long-term orientation can be improved through the insights provided by this study.Originality/valueTo the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the collective effects of psychological and task environmental factors on the long-term orientation of the TMT. Additionally, this study sheds light on the internal dynamics of the top-management team.</jats:sec

Long-term focus and attitude toward entrepreneurial behaviors: the moderating effect of industry-clockspeed

Purpose This study aims to identify and examine the antecedents of attitude toward entrepreneurial behaviors (ATEB) of firms. Additionally, this study also identifies and examines the antecedents of innovativeness and proactiveness. Furthermore, this study explains how factors within and outside the organization affect ATEB, innovativeness and proactiveness. Design/methodology/approach This study uses the attention-based view (ABV) and examines the effects of long-term focus and industry clockspeed on attitude toward firms’ entrepreneurial behaviors (EB). This study measures ATEB by analyzing the top management team’s words in the earnings conference calls. It applies the two-stage least squares regression with fixed effects and instrumental variables to conduct the empirical analysis. Findings The results indicate that the direct effects of long-term focus and industry clockspeed on ATEB are not significant. However, the moderating effect of industry clockspeed on the relationship between long-term focus and EB is significant and positive. The results indicate that firms that are operating in fast clockspeed industries exhibiting long-term focus exhibit EB. Furthermore, the results also indicate that long-term focus and industry clockspeed collectively affect innovativeness and proactiveness. Practical implications This research helps firms to develop entrepreneurial behavior operating under various task environment conditions. Originality/value This study applies the ABV of the firm and contributes to the area of firm-level EB, while prior studies have not implemented this perspective in investigating firm-level EB. Past studies have not applied the ABV of the firm to study EB, innovativeness and proactiveness either independently or collectively. </jats:sec

Stereotype Tax: The Unequal Terrain of Crowdfunding for Women and Black Entrepreneurs

The higher information asymmetry in crowdfunding underscores the significance of trust compared to traditional financing methods. Trust in the high-asymmetry crowdfunding environment relies on cues, which can lead to biased judgments by fund-providers. This study addresses the scarcity of research on bias in crowdfunding by examining how fund-providers, relying on entrepreneurial cues, develop trust. The study defines and introduces the concept of a stereotype tax in entrepreneurial funding, suggesting that minority entrepreneurs face additional expectations to secure trust and funding. Drawing on social categorization theory, the study explores the interaction of uncontrollable cues (race and gender) and controllable cues (expertise, enactment, passion, novelty, and usefulness). Data were collected from MTurk using an experimental survey. This study attempts to create awareness regarding hidden challenges in the form of a \u27hidden\u27 stereotype tax for women and black entrepreneurs in the US in securing trust and funding from fund-providers

Methicillin Resistant and Biofi lm Producing Staphylococcus species Isolated from Different Clinical Specimens and Antibiotic Susceptibility Pattern of Isolates

Objectives: To determine prevalence of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in different clinical specimens and biofilm production along with antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of isolates.&#x0D; Methods: Cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2019 to February 2020at Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital. Total 3091 clinical specimens like blood, urine, sputum, pus, swab, body fluid were processed. Identification was done on the basis of colony characteristics, gram staining, culture in Mannitol Salt Agar, coagulase and oxidation fermentation test. Antibiotic susceptibility test and biofilm detection were performed by Kirby Bauer’s disc diffusion methods and Tissue Culture Plate technique (TCP) respectively. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus species were detected by using Cefoxitin disc.&#x0D; Results: Out of 52 Staphylococcus species, 39 were Staphylococcus aureus and 13 were Coagulase negative Staphylococcus species. Highest numbers of Staphylococcus species were isolated from blood Sixteen (30.8%) were Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and 5(9.6%) were Methicillin resistant Coagulase negative Staphylococcus species. There was no significant association (p=0.25) between age group and prevalence of MRSA, MSSA, MRCoNS and MSCoNS. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus species were resistant to antibiotics like amoxicillin, cloxacillin, erythromycin and higher sensitivity was found in gentamycin. Among 52 Staphylococcal isolates, 11(21.1%) were biofilm producers and 41(78.9%) were non biofilm producers. 90.9%of 90.9% of Biofilm producing Staphylococcus species were resistant towards penicillin and erythromycin&#x0D; Conclusion: The study shows Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus species were resistant to most antibiotics and rate of resistance was slightly higher in biofilm producing isolates comparing to other isolates. resistance. Regular surveillance of methicillin resistance Staphylococcus species and routine screening of biofilm production is important.  </jats:p