On the containment problem

The purpose of this note is to provide an overview of the containment problem for symbolic and ordinary powers of homogeneous ideals, related conjectures and examples. We focus here on ideals with zero dimensional support. This is an area of ongoing active research. We conclude the note with a list of potential promising paths of further research.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figur

Scheduling in healthcare with multiple resources

The need for improving efficiency in healthcare is motivated largely by increasing global costs of healthcare. One possibility for improvement is in the optimization of the many schedules found within healthcare. This dissertation focuses on just that for two scheduling problems found within healthcare: the appointment scheduling problem and the master surgery scheduling problem. We first look at the appointment scheduling problem – the problem of assigning time slots to patients booking an appointment at a clinic – examining the various ways in which the randomness of this problem is accounted for, and generalising the problem so that its solutions may be used in a wider range of settings in practice. We consider the application of phase-type distributions as well as simulation and analytical approaches, and we optimize appointment schedules for settings both with multiple healthcare providers, and where patients may arrive in batches rather than one-by-one as is usual. Hereafter, we look at a practical scheduling issue, reporting upon the optimization – via mixed integer linear programming – and subsequent implementation of a surgery schedule for a medium sized hospital in the Netherlands. This problem requires assigning surgical specialties to operate in a given room at a given time during a four-week long repeating schedule; the number of possible combinations of which grows extraordinarily fast, even for a small number of specialties and rooms. In this dissertation, we present the method by which we handled the size of the problem, and pay particular attention to the matter of expectations management throughout the project

The drivers of Corporate Social Responsibility in the supply chain. A case study.

Purpose: The paper studies the way in which a SME integrates CSR into its corporate strategy, the practices it puts in place and how its CSR strategies reflect on its suppliers and customers relations. Methodology/Research limitations: A qualitative case study methodology is used. The use of a single case study limits the generalizing capacity of these findings. Findings: The entrepreneur’s ethical beliefs and value system play a fundamental role in shaping sustainable corporate strategy. Furthermore, the type of competitive strategy selected based on innovation, quality and responsibility clearly emerges both in terms of well defined management procedures and supply chain relations as a whole aimed at involving partners in the process of sustainable innovation. Originality/value: The paper presents a SME that has devised an original innovative business model. The study pivots on the issues of innovation and eco-sustainability in a context of drivers for CRS and business ethics. These values are considered fundamental at International level; the United Nations has declared 2011 the “International Year of Forestry”