The Impact of Information Systems Management Elements on Human Resource Development: The Case of Jordan Commercial Bank

We investigate the impact of information systems management on human resource development at the Jordan Commercial Bank (JCB). The study’s sample consists of (192) employers, division chief, and manager who work in the JCB and its branches spread all over Jordan. To achieve the goals of this study a questionnaire is designed to estimate the impact of applying information systems management (building an infrastructure and improving strategic planning) on human resource development in the Jordan Commercial Bank by measuring professional growth, staff performance, and staff satisfaction as a human resource development domains. It is shown that: i) the range of information system management at the JCB has a significant positive effect in terms of organizational performance and strategic planning “from the organizational perspective”, likewise, the professional growth, job satisfaction and performance of the employees “from the personal perspective”, ii) the range of human resource development at JCB is medium, iii) there is a significant statistical effect of information system management on human resource development at JCB, iv) there is a significant statistical effect on the elements of information system management (professional development, staff performance, and staff satisfaction), v) there are no effects of (gender, employment position, and experience) on both information system management and human resource development. The research recommends that (JCB) management should concentrate on the staff satisfaction domain by giving promotions and some privileges and (JCB) management should exchange experiences with local and international banks

Diagnosis of COVID-19 from X-rays Using Recurrent Neural Network

Nearly two years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has caused drastic changes in many aspects of life at many levels in the world, and this has affected peoples lifestyles. This impact was particularly significant and impactful on the health sectors, among many others. The COVID-19 virus has essentially increased the demand for treatment, diagnosis and testing. The definitive test for diagnosing COVID-19 is reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR); nevertheless, chest x-ray is a quick, effective and inexpensive diagnosis to detect possible pneumonia associated with COVID-19. In this study, the feasibility of using a deep learning-based Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) classifier to detect COVID-19 from CXR images is investigated. The proposed classifier consists of an RNN, trained by a deep learning model. The RNN identifies abnormal images that contain signs of COVID-19. The experiment used in the study employed 286 COVID-19 samples from the Kaggle Repository. The proposed technique is compared with the decision tree algorithm in order to prove the efficiency of the proposed one. The results revealed that the accuracy of the RNN was 97.90%, with a low data loss rate of 2.10%, while the decision tree accuracy was 75.8741%, and a relatively high data loss rate of 24.1259%. These results support the usefulness of the proposed deep learning-based RNN classifier in pre-screening patients for triage and decision-making before RT-PCR data are available

Pulmonary arterial hypertension in Saudi patients with systemic sclerosis: Clinical and hemodynamic characteristics and mortality

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc). The objective of this study is to describe the clinical characteristics, mortality, and predictors of SSc-PAH in Saudi patients. METHODS: Retrospective chart review study of SSc patients who were followed for at least 1 year in three tertiary care centers in Saudi Arabia was conducted. Clinical information, echocardiographic findings, and right heart catheterization (RHC) results were collected. Descriptive statistics were used for demographic and disease characteristics. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients with SSc were reviewed. PAH was confirmed by RHC in 40 patients (87.5%, females). Their mean age was 45.43 ± 13.48 years. The mean pulmonary artery pressure was 42.9 ± 12.7 mmHg, the pulmonary vascular resistance index was 19.4 ± 7.7 woods unit, and cardiac index was 2.43 ± 0.68 min/m2. The median time from symptoms to first assessment was 42.8 ± 115.62 months. Most patients (77.5%) presented with functional Class III or IV and more than half (22.55%) were on dual combination therapy. Ten patients (25%) SSc PAH died over a follow up period of 37 ± 7 months. Compared to SSc patients without PAH, SSc-PAH patients had shorter 6-min walk distance (6MWD) (296.1 ± 116.5 vs. 399.59 ± 40.60 m, P < 0.0001), higher pro-brain natriuretic peptide (1755.8 ± 2123.4 vs. 69.8 ± 44.3 pg/ml P = 0.004), and more frequent Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) (90% vs. 35%, P < 0.0001). Logistic regression showed RP (odds ratio [OR] =48.58, 95% confidence interval [CI]; 3.73–633.10) and 6MWD (OR 1.02: 95% CI; 1.01–1.03) were associated with the development of PAH. CONCLUSION: Our cohort of Saudi SSc-PAH patients has a younger disease onset and a lower mortality than what is described worldwide despite late presentation and requirement of combination therapy. The presence of RP and lower were associated with the development of SSc-PAH

Assessment of antigen presenting cell infiltration in lung tissues of patients with bronchiectasis

Background: Bronchiectasis is a chronic disease characterized by permanent dilatation of the conducting airways accompanied by sustained inflammation. Aims: To assess whether chronic inflammation of lungs in bronchiectasis is associated with alterations in the numbers of infiltrating antigen presenting cell (APC). Setting and Design: Lobectomy specimens from 12 nonsmoker, nonasthmatic patients with acquired (noncongenital) bronchiectasis and six control patients were included in the study. Histopathology slides were reviewed, and immunohistochemical markers for dendritic cells (DCs) macrophages and Langerhans cells have been applied and analyzed. Materials and Methods: Tissue specimens were stained by immunohistochemistry using markers for DCs (CD83 and CD23), macrophages (CD68 and CD163), and Langerhans cells (CD1A and S-100 protein). The mean cell counts of stained cells in five high power microscopic fields were recorded. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics, mean, standard deviation, median, and interquartile range were used. A nonparametric Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare cell counts between bronchiectasis and control patients. P <0.05 was considered significant. Results: The mean age of patients with bronchiectasis and controls was 36.7 ± 16.6 and 31.8 ± 22.6 years, respectively. The predominant cell type among the patients was macrophage (median 50.5) followed by DCs (median 44.85), histiocytes (median 32), and Langerhans cells (median 5%). Compared to the controls a significantly higher number of macrophages (P = 0.01), DCs (P = 0.001), and Langerhans cells (P = 0.014) were present. Conclusion: Chronic inflammatory response in acquired (noncongenital) bronchiectasis is most probably mediated by increased infiltration of APCs in lung tissues

Association of Markers of Inflammation with Sleep and Physical Activity Among People Living with HIV or AIDS

This study examined associations of sleep and minutes spent in moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin (IL)-6 among persons living with HIV (PLWH). Cross-sectional analyses (n=45) focused on associations of inflammatory outcomes (i.e., CRP and IL-6) with actigraph-derived sleep duration, latency, and efficiency; bedtime; wake time; and wake-after-sleep-onset; as well as MVPA. Least square means for CRP and IL-6 by levels of sleep and MVPA were computed from general linear models. Individuals below the median of sleep duration, above the median for bedtime, and below the median of MVPA minutes had higher CRP or IL-6 levels. Generally, individuals with both low MVPA and poor sleep characteristics had higher inflammation levels than those with more MVPA and better sleep. Understanding the combined impact of multiple lifestyle/behavioral factors on inflammation could inform intervention strategies to reduce inflammation and therefore, chronic disease risk