Tracking Client Performance: Monitoring Systems for Social Performance Management

This Practice Note discusses how microfinance institutions (MFIs) can cost-effectively monitor and improve their social performance. By monitoring, we refer to regular, systematic and on-going collection of timely and appropriate information that helps the staff and clients of an organization to make decisions to improve the quality of their work. You probably already monitor your financial portfolio so that you can respond to problems and reduce risk. If you also monitor your success in meeting your social goals, this will help you to manage and improve your social performance, by revealing patterns and trends in who you reach and how they perform. This information allows you to track progress against objectives; to identify and respond to problems at an early stage; to see whether there are differences in performance for different client groups, different branches, products or staff; and to assess the risk and performance of different products and services. Together these contribute to improving the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of your work. Monitoring provides an overall picture of performance rather than an understanding of the reasons for the trends and patterns observed. It therefore does not take the place of more in-depth assessments of social performance, but it helps to guide and complement them.Financial Economics,

Imperfect Market Monitoring and SOES Trading

We develop a model of price formation in a dealership market where monitoring of the information flow requires costly effort. The result is imperfect monitoring, which creates profit opportunities for speculators, who do not act as dealers but simply monitor the information flow and quote updates in order to pick off stale quotes. Externalities associated with monitoring can help to sustain non-competitive spreads. We show that protecting dealers against the execution of stale quotes can result in larger spreads and be detrimental to price discovery due to externalities in monitoring. A reduction in the minimum quoted depth will reduce the spread and speculators' trading frequency. Our analysis is relevant for the SOES debate given that the behavior of speculators in our model is very similar to the alleged behavior of the real world SOES bandits.monitoring; bid-ask spread; automatic execution; SOES trading

Opportunity cost and prudentiality : an analysis of futures clearinghouse behavior

Margin deposits, which serve as collateral to protect the clearinghouse, are typically the most important tool for risk management. The authors develop a model that explains how creating a futures clearinghouse may allow traders simultaneously to reduce both the risk of default and the total amount of margin that members post. Optimal margin levels are determined by the need to balance the deadweight costs of default against the opportunity cost of holding additional margin. Both costs are a consequence of market participants'imperfect access to capital markets. The simultaneous reduction in default risk and in the opportunity cost of margin deposits is possible because the creation of the clearinghouse facilitates multilateral netting. The authors characterize the conditions under which multilateral netting will dominate bilateral netting. They also show that it is credible for the clearinghouse to expel members who default, further reducing the risk of default. Finally, they show that it may (but need not) be optimal for the clearinghouse to monitor the financial condition of its members. If monitoring occurs, it will reduce the amount of margin required, but need not affect the probability of default. The empirical tests run by the authors indicate that the opportunity cost of margin plays an important role in determining margin. The relationship between volatility and margins indicates that participants face an upward-sloping opportunity cost for margin, which appears to more than offset the effects that monitoring and expulsion would be expected to have on margin setting.Environmental Economics&Policies,Banks&Banking Reform,International Terrorism&Counterterrorism,Economic Theory&Research,Insurance&Risk Mitigation

Self-monitoring for students with disabilities

This study sought out answers to the questions: Are students who are taught self-management skills better able to monitor their own learning then students who are not taught the skill? Does the use of self-monitoring applications improve a student’s chance of becoming a better self-monitor? Do high or low-tech strategies help students manage their learning and behavior the best? For this study three seventh grade students were observed. Two of the students were observed in a self-contained English Language Arts class while the last was in an inclusive English Language Arts class. Each student had varying disabilities that affected his or her learning and or behavior. Each student was observed for one week to identify what skills he or she needed assistance with self-monitoring. After the skills were identified, each student was taught three strategies with one week in between. The first strategy was a low tech strategy, the second was a combination high and low tech strategy, and the third was a strictly high tech strategy. Throughout the process the students were observed by the teacher as well as self accessing their progress in each task. After doing the research it is clear that students who are taught self-monitoring skills are better self-managers. Each participant made strides in their self-management but not all of the techniques worked for every student. Students with disabilities such as ADHD and ADD struggled with high tech techniques while students with anxiety found those strategies helpful. It was also interesting to note that not every child was able to correctly identify his or her ability to self-monitor. These techniques will hopefully help the students the rest of their lives. Teaching these strategies to students will help them make progress in accessing their own learning. Teachers just need to find what strategy works best for his or her students

International Normalised Ratio Monitoring in Children: Comparing the accuracy of portable point-of-care monitors to standard of care laboratory monitoring at Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital

Background. There is an increasing trend in the use of long-term oral anticoagulation therapy in children. Monitoring the international normalised ratio (INR) is an integral part in management of these patients, but standard laboratory testing of the INR presents challenges in this age group. Point-of-care INR monitors such as the Mission® PT/INR monitor provide advantages in efficiency and accessibility but have not been evaluated for accuracy in the South African paediatric setting. Objectives. This is a feasibility study with the aim to evaluate the accuracy of the Mission® PT/INR Monitor in comparison to standard laboratory INR measurement, in children presenting for INR testing. Methods. We compared the accuracy of the Mission® PT/INR monitor to the Sysmex Cs2100i laboratory analyser in 37 children aged between 1 year and 17 years, who presented for INR testing. The sample size was limited due to time constraints. 40 paired POC INR and laboratory INR values were obtained. Results. The majority of participants in the study were outpatients (62%) and required INR testing as part of screening in non-cardiac disease (81%) - the majority had chronic liver disease, and a minority were on warfarin therapy (13.5%). The mean INR value on the Mission® PT/INR was 1.49 (standard deviation (SD) 0.73) and was comparable to the Sysmex Cs-2100i (mean INR value 1.39 with SD 0.69). The Bland-Altman difference plot revealed good agreement. Bias between the two methods was 0.13 (SD 0.23). In total, 92.5% of POC INR values were within 0.5 units of laboratory INR value. Conclusion. The Mission® PT/INR point-of-care monitor has a clinically acceptable level of accuracy in children when compared with laboratory INR measurement, but larger studies are needed in the paediatric setting to evaluate patient safety and clinical outcomes. There is a need for implementing POC INR monitoring in outpatient settings but this practice will require robust assessment of infrastructure and quality control before application

Rancang Bangun Aplikasi Pengintai Aktifitas Komputer Menggunakan Layanan Cloud To Device Messaging (C2DM) pada Smartphone Android

Computer ownership is increasing makes users more or less will affect the number of users who interact with it. Based on the results of research conducted National Center Education Statistics (NCES, 2003). Segmentation of Internet use in adolescents in this age range as much as 42 use it to complete school assignments, while 38 percent use email or chat facilities which includes playing games online, and 22 percent subsequently use the internet for browsing and searching for information. But not all the content containing educational information, and also a lot of negative information that is not compliant accessible to children. To solve this problem it created a system that can monitor the activities of users such as children when accessing the computer in realtime using the Cloud To Device Messaging Service (C2DM) on Android smartphones by parents. Given the android smartphone is also a handset that is able to always connect to the Internet for realtime data synchronization is different from ordinary mobile phones to be done manually. Given this system, the role of parents to monitor their children when accessing the computer is not overlooked

ICEs New Young Adult Case Management Program: Why It Falls Short of Case Management Best Practices and Puts Youth at Risk

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched the Young Adult Case Management Program (YACMP) in January 2023 to target and monitor 18- and19-year-old youth who the agency deems "low flight risk" and "non-dangerous." ICE characterizes this program as an "Alternative to Detention," but the program's design makes clear that it will not decrease reliance on detention and instead increase the number of young people under government monitoring. Rather than work collaboratively with youth to match them with support services based on their individual needs, ICE unilaterally and arbitrarily enrolls youth in YACMP if they are facing immigration court proceedings and are not detained, irrespective of their specific needs.This policy brief examines: 1) who are the youth impacted by this new ICE program; 2) what this program entails and how it compares with traditional case management programs; and 3) what we know about the corporation ICE has contracted to run this program. It has recommendations for effective case management for impacted youth

Enforcement Guide: Near Shore Artisanal Fisheries

We need healthy oceans to support our way of life. Unfortunately, fish stocks are under growing pressure and the need to find innovative and pragmatic resource management strategies is more important than ever. Disregard for fisheries and environmental laws is common and if we are to succeed in reversing the declining trend, we must draft relevant regulations, design and fund comprehensive enforcement programs and cultivate a culture of compliance. Historically, marine law enforcement has been the competency of Naval and Coast Guard authorities; however, many fishery and park agencies, who lack training, equipment, and at times controlling legal authority, are tasked with fisheries management and enforcement. Complicating matters, most agencies are understaffed; lack budgetary resources, and possess limited authority (i.e. power of arrest and the ability to use force). WildAid in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy developed this guide to assist managers in designing a cost effective enforcement strategy for near shore artisanal fisheries. This document is not a recompilation of literature, but a practical guide based on our experience in the Eastern and Western Pacific. Generally, an enforcement system is designed to monitor all activities within a given area ranging from tourism, investigation, and transportation to fisheries; however, this guide will focus primarily on near shore artisanal fisheries. The objectives of this guide are three-fold:1. Examine all factors considered for the design and operation of a marine law enforcement system; 2. Illustrate key components of an enforcement system and evaluate surveillance technology and patrol equipment options; 3. Guide managers in the design and implementation of an enforcement system.In summary, it aims to equip managers with the tools needed to strengthen fisheries management and design enforcement systems that are practical, affordable and feasible to implement in a timely manner. Fisheries enforcement requires a holistic approach that accounts for surveillance, interdiction, systematic training, education and outreach and lastly, meaningful sanctions. Although it explores many surveillance technologies and management tools, this guide more importantly provides a blueprint for the capacity building and professionalization of enforcement officers, who truly are the core component of any fisheries enforcement program

Eliminating Monitor Overuse (EMO) Type III Effectiveness-Deimplementation Cluster-Randomized Trial: Statistical Analysis Plan

Background: Deimplementing overused health interventions is essential to maximizing quality and value while minimizing harm, waste, and inefficiencies. Three national guidelines discourage continuous pulse oximetry (SpO2) monitoring in children who are not receiving supplemental oxygen, but the guideline-discordant practice remains prevalent, making it a prime target for deimplementation. This paper details the statistical analysis plan for the Eliminating Monitor Overuse (EMO) SpO2 trial, which compares the effect of two competing deimplementation strategies (unlearning only vs. unlearning plus substitution) on the sustainment of deimplementation of SpO2 monitoring in children with bronchiolitis who are in room air. Methods: The EMO Trial is a hybrid type 3 effectiveness-deimplementation trial with a longitudinal cluster-randomized design, conducted in Pediatric Research in Inpatient Settings Network hospitals. The primary outcome is deimplementation sustainment, analyzed as a longitudinal difference-in-differences comparison between study arms. This analysis will use generalized hierarchical mixed-effects models for longitudinal clustering outcomes. Secondary outcomes include the length of hospital stay and oxygen supplementation duration, modeled using linear mixed-effects regressions. Using the well-established counterfactual approach, we will also perform a mediation analysis of hospital-level mechanistic measures on the association between the deimplementation strategy and the sustainment outcome. Discussion: We anticipate that the EMO Trial will advance the science of deimplementation by providing new insights into the processes, mechanisms, and likelihood of sustained practice change using rigorously designed deimplementation strategies. This pre-specified statistical analysis plan will mitigate reporting bias and support data-driven approaches