Improving project management planning and control in service operations environment.

Projects have evidently become the core activity in most companies and organisations where they are investing significant amount of resources in different types of projects as building new services, process improvement, etc. This research has focused on service sector in attempt to improve project management planning and control activities. The research is concerned with improving the planning and control of software development projects. Existing software development models are analysed and their best practices identified and these have been used to build the proposed model in this research. The research extended the existing planning and control approaches by considering uncertainty in customer requirements, resource flexibility and risks level variability. In considering these issues, the research has adopted lean principles for planning and control software development projects. A novel approach introduced within this research through the integration of simulation modelling techniques with Taguchi analysis to investigate ‗what if‘ project scenarios. Such scenarios reflect the different combinations of the factors affecting project completion time and deliverables. In addition, the research has adopted the concept of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) to develop an automated Operations Project Management Deployment (OPMD) model. The model acts as an iterative manner uses ‗what if‘ scenario performance outputs to identify constraints that may affect the completion of a certain task or phase. Any changes made during the project phases will then automatically update the performance metrics for each software development phases. In addition, optimisation routines have been developed that can be used to provide management response and to react to the different levels of uncertainty. Therefore, this research has looked at providing a comprehensive and visual overview of important project tasks i.e. progress, scheduled work, different resources, deliverables and completion that will make it easier for project members to communicate with each other to reach consensus on goals, status and required changes. Risk is important aspect that has been included in the model as well to avoid failure. The research emphasised on customer involvement, top management involvement as well as team members to be among the operational factors that escalate variability levels 3 and effect project completion time and deliverables. Therefore, commitment from everyone can improve chances of success. Although the role of different project management techniques to implement projects successfully has been widely established in areas such as the planning and control of time, cost and quality; still, the distinction between the project and project management is less than precise and a little was done in investigating different levels of uncertainty and risk levels that may occur during different project phase.United Arab Emirates Governmen

Heat Misconceptions among 11th Grade students

This study explores the misconception of the female students at 11thgrade about the heat concepts (e.g., latency, conduction, equilibrium, boiling point, etc.) the study targets to i – classifying the misconception nature, and ii- distinguishing the heat misconception from point of the lack of knowledge and lucky guess. A sample of 230 female students at 11th grade randomly selected from five secondary schools in the Emirates of Fujairah; northern UAE. The heat misconception test (HMT), a three –tier diagnostic instrument comprising of ten question is used as data collection tool. The study raises the three research questions. i- what is the misconception are the 11th grade students demonstrating about the heat concepts?, ii- what would be the percentage of the 11th grade students who demonstrate lack of knowledge about the heat conception, and iii- What would be the percentage of the 11th grade students who demonstrate lucky guess about heat concept? The participants classified into four categories according to their understanding about the heat concepts i- misconceptions. ii- lack of knowledge. iii- lucky guess and iv- scientific Knowledge. The data analysis reveal s that most of participants from the 11th grade students expressing misconceptions about the heat as a physical phenomenon, whereas more than 50% of the participants expressing misconceptions about heat equilibrium . The concept ion of latent heat boiling point. Specific heat capacity. and heat latent expressed by 62% of the participants. 1 3% expressing heat misconceptions from the lack of knowledge. However, 3% of the students expressing heat misconceptions that related to lucky guess by a ii questions in H MT. On the other hand, 21 % of the students having a proper scientific knowledge about the heat physics. As the misconception about teaching a physical phenomenon is a learning challenge. The study recommends improving the delivery of the scientific subject to be more practical than theoretical . Moreover, the test should consider conceptions of the students regarding the natural phenomena. The implications of the study are for the science teachers to encourage the students to engage intensively in the classroom interaction. The implications as well for the science curriculum specialists to introduce easy-to-understand scientific knowledge and problem solutions

Terbufos sulfon pogoršava srčane lezije u štakora koji boluju od dijabetesa: studija subakutne toksičnosti

Organophosphorus compounds (OPCs) have a wide range of applications, from agriculture to warfare. Exposure to these brings forward a varied kind of health issues globally. Terbufos is one of the leading OPCs used worldwide. The present study investigates the cardiac effect of no observable dose of a metabolite of terbufos, terbufos-sulfone (TS), under nondiabetic and streptozotocin-induced diabetic condition. 100 nmol per rat (1/20 of LD50) was administered intraperitoneally to adult male Wister rats daily for fifteen days. The left ventricle was collected for ultrastructural changes by transmission electron microscopy. The blood samples were collected for biochemical tests including RBC acetylcholinesterase, creatinine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), triglycerides, ALT, AST, and GGT. The study revealed about 10 % inhibition of RBC-AChE in two weeks of TS treatment in non-diabetic rats whereas RBC-AChE activity was significantly decreased in diabetic TS treated rats. CK, LDH, and triglycerides were significantly higher in diabetic TS treated rats. Electron microscopy of the heart showed derangement and lesions of the mitochondria of cardiomyocytes in the TS treated groups. The present study concludes that a non-lethal dose of TS causes cardiac lesions which exacerbate under diabetic condition. Biochemical tests confirmed the ultrastructural changes. It is concluded that a non-lethal dose of TS may be a risk factor for a cardiovascular disease, which may be fatal under diabetic condition.Organofosforni spojevi (eng. Organophosphorous Compounds - OPCs) imaju široku primjenu, od one u poljoprivredi do one u vojne svrhe. Izlaganje takvim spojevima izaziva niz različitih zdravstvenih problema od globalnog značaja. Terbufos je jedan od vodećih OPC-a koji se koriste diljem svijeta. U ovom je istraživanju na modelu štakora bez dijabetesa sa streptozotocinom izazvanim dijabetesom ispitivan metabolit terbufos-sulfon (TS) u najvišoj dozi koja ne izaziva učinak te njezin utjecaj na srce. Odrasli mužjaci štakora soja Wistar dobivali su petnaest dana dnevnu dozu od 100 nmol štakor-1 (1/20 LD50) intraperitonealno. Transmisijskim elektronskim mikroskopom istražene su ultrastrukturne promjene lijeve klijetke. Na krvnim uzorcima provedeni su biokemijski testovi, uključujući aktivnost acetilkolinesteraze u crvenim krvnim stanicama, razinu kreatinin kinaze (CK), laktat dehidrogenaze (LDH), kolesterola, lipoproteina visoke gustoće (HDL), lipoproteina niske gustoće (LDL), triglicerida, ALT, AST i GGT. Istraživanjem je otkriveno oko 10 % inhibicije AChE-a u crvenim krvnim stanicama nakon dva tjedna izlaganja štakora bez dijabetesa TS-u, dok je u štakora s dijabetesom aktivnost AChE-a bila značajno smanjena. Razine CK, LDH i triglicerida bile su značajno više u TS tretiranim štakorima s dijabetesom. Elektronsko-mikroskopska analiza srca upućuje na narušenu strukturu i lezije u mitohondrijima u kardiomiocitima skupina štakora koji su tretirani TS-om. Zaključuje se da nesmrtonosna doza TS-a uzrokuje srčane lezije koje se pogoršavaju u prisutnosti dijabetesa. Biokemijski testovi potvrdili su ultrastrukturne promjene. Navedena doza TS-a može biti rizični čimbenik za kardiovaskularne bolesti, koje se mogu pokazati smrtonosnima uz istovremeno postojanje dijabetesa

INOVATIVNE PRAKSE U UGOSTITELJSTVU – PREGLED LITERATURE

The purpose of this research is to provide guidance for future research that may be related to the concept of innovation specifically within the hospitality industry, which is quite imperative when recent researches are being analyzed further and looked on in a deeper scope. Literature reviews examined in this study had a different drive. The main purpose was to analyze factors that influence business models in the hospitality industry, to provide fusion potential on collaborative innovation in tourism and hospitality and to determine dimensions for sustainable oriented hospitality innovation. This literature review seeks to inspect the existing literature published in the period 2012-2022 by using Emerald Insight and ProQuest database with the following keywords: “innovation” and “hospitality” concerning their a) research focus, b) methodology used, c) sample, d) results. All papers that matched the research requirements and time frame are presented. The two databases were carefully examined for the purpose of this study. This systematic and detailed literature review could be a useful base for future researches and service innovation as a key of business success and competitive advantage for the hospitality industry. One of the most significant findings is the relative lack of empirical researches conducted on the sample of restaurants.Svrha ovog istraživanja je pružiti smjernice za buduća istraživanja vezana uz inovacije u ugostiteljstvu, a u tu svrhu važno je analizirati novija istraživanja i sintetizirati glavne pristupe i nalaze. Pregledi literature analizirani u ovoj studiji imali su drugu svrhu. Njihova je svrha bila analizirati čimbenike koji utječu na poslovne modele u ugostiteljstvu, pružiti sintezu o inovacijama svojstvenima turizmu i ugostiteljstvu te odrediti dimenzije za ugostiteljske inovacije koje su orijentirane na održivost. Ovaj pregled literature nastoji analizirati postojeće istraživačke studije objavljene u razdoblju od 2012. do 2022. godine koristeći Emerald Insight i ProQuest bazu podataka sa sljedećim ključnim riječima: “inovacija” i “ugostiteljstvo” u vezi s njihovim a) fokusom istraživanja, b) korištenom metodologijom znanstvenog rada, c) uzorkom, d) rezultatima istraživanja. Prikazani su svi radovi koji su odgovarali zahtjevima istraživanja i vremenskom okviru. Dvije su baze podataka temeljito pregledane za potrebe ove studije. Ovaj sustavni i detaljni pregled literature mogao bi biti korisna baza za buduća istraživanja u području inovacija u uslužnom sektoru kao ključ poslovnog uspjeha i konkurentske prednosti ugostiteljske industrije. Jedan od najznačajnijih zaključaka je relativan nedostatak empirijskih istraživanja provedenih na uzorku restorana

Prevalence and trends of transfusion transmissible infections among blood donors in the State of Qatar, 2013-2017.

Millions of lives around the world are being saved annually through blood transfusion. However, blood transfusion is among the essential vehicles for transmitting infections. The overall prevalence of Transfusion Transmissible Infections among blood donors differs around the world, reflecting the variation in the prevalence of these infections. This study aims to assess the prevalence and trends of Transfusion Transmissible Infections among blood donors in Qatar. This is a cross-sectional study utilizing donation records of 5 years from January 2013 to December 2017. We included in the study results for all screening and confirmatory tests for Hepatitis B Virus, Hepatitis C Virus, Human T-lymphotropic Virus-I/II, Syphilis and Malaria. Among the 190,509 donations received at the donation centre during the study period, about 91% of donations were received from males and 9% from females. The overall positivity rate for all tests was 1.87, 2.23, 1.78, 2.31, 2.67% for the years 2013 through 2017, with an increasing yearly trend by 6% each year. The overall positivity rates for Hepatitis C Virus, Human T-lymphotropic Virus-I/II, Hepatitis B Virus, Syphilis and Malaria (2013-2017) were 0.60, 0.18, 0.30, 0.43 and 0.20%, respectively. The overall positivity rate of all tests combined for the Transfusion Transmissible Infections demonstrated a gradually increasing trend from 2013 to 2017. However, the trend for each infection (Hepatitis C Virus, Hepatitis B Virus, Syphilis and Malaria) was fluctuating except for Human T-lymphotropic Virus-I/II, which was increasing. Supporting the development of effective prevention and control strategies requires further comprehensive investigations for better estimation of the burden of these infections.The authors gratefully acknowledge the Blood Donation Center at HMC for their support

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Diabetic Patients in the United Arab Emirates

Diabetes self-management education is a cornerstone of diabetes care. However, many diabetics in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) lack sufficient knowledge about their disease due to illiteracy. Thus, before considering any possible intervention it was imperative to assess present knowledge, attitudes, and practices of patients towards the management of diabetes

Demographics and Epidemiology of Hepatitis B in the State of Qatar: A Five-Year Surveillance-Based Incidence Study

Background: Expatriates represent >80% of Qatar’s population, mostly arriving from countries in Africa and Asia that are endemic with many diseases. This increases the risk for introducing new pathogens into the country and provides a platform for maintenance of endemic pathogen circulation. Here, we report on the incidence and epidemiological characteristics of hepatitis B in Qatar between 2010 and 2014. Methods: We performed a retrospective epidemiological data analysis using the data available at the surveillance system of the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) in Qatar. Data were collected from distinctive public and private incorporates around the nation. Reported cases of hepatitis B patients represent those who met the stringent case definition as per World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and eventually reported to MOPH. Results: The annual incidence rates of hepatitis B cases were 30.0, 34.2, 30.5, 39.4, and 19.8 per 100,000 population in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014, respectively. There was no specific trend or seasonality for the reported cases. The incidence rates were higher in females compared to males between 2010 and 2012, but similar in 2013 and 2014. The highest incidence rates were reported among individuals between 25 and 34 years of age. No cases were reported in children younger than five years in 2013 and 2014. Rates of hepatitis B cases declined dramatically in 2014, in both Qataris and non-Qataris, as compared to the previous years. Conclusion: Our results indicate a dramatic decline of hepatitis B cases in Qatar but mandate improved surveillance and vaccination efforts in expatriates in the nation. View Full-TextMOP

Divorce and Severity of Coronary Artery Disease: A Multicenter Study

The association between marital status and coronary artery disease (CAD) is supported by numerous epidemiological studies. While divorce may have an adverse effect on cardiac outcomes, the relationship between divorce and severe CAD is unclear. We conducted a multicenter, observational study of consecutive patients undergoing coronary angiography during the period between April 1, 2013, and March 30, 2014. Of 1,068 patients, 124 (12%) were divorced. Divorce was more frequent among women (27%) compared to men (6%). Most divorced patients had been divorced only once (49%), but a subset had been divorced 2 (38%) or ≥3 (12%) times. After adjusting for baseline differences, there was no significant association between divorce and severe CAD in men. In women, there was a significant adjusted association between divorce and severe MVD (OR 2.31 [1.16, 4.59]) or LMD (OR 5.91 [2.19, 15.99]). The modification of the association between divorce and severe CAD by gender was statistically significant for severe LMD (Pinteraction 0.0008) and marginally significant for CAD (Pinteraction 0.05). Among women, there was a significant adjusted association between number of divorces and severe CAD (OR 2.4 [95% CI 1.2, 4.5]), MVD (OR 2.0 [95% CI 1.4, 3.0]), and LMD (OR 3.4 [95% CI 1.9, 5.9]). In conclusion, divorce, particularly multiple divorces, is associated with severe CAD, MVD, and LMD in women but not in men

Prognostic tools and candidate drugs based on plasma proteomics of patients with severe COVID-19 complications

COVID-19 complications still present a huge burden on healthcare systems and warrant predictive risk models to triage patients and inform early intervention. Here, we profile 893 plasma proteins from 50 severe and 50 mild-moderate COVID-19 patients, and 50 healthy controls, and show that 375 proteins are differentially expressed in the plasma of severe COVID-19 patients. These differentially expressed plasma proteins are implicated in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and present targets for candidate drugs to prevent or treat severe complications. Based on the plasma proteomics and clinical lab tests, we also report a 12-plasma protein signature and a model of seven routine clinical tests that validate in an independent cohort as early risk predictors of COVID-19 severity and patient survival. The risk predictors and candidate drugs described in our study can be used and developed for personalized management of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients. 2022, The Author(s).The authors would like to thank all the patients, volunteers, and the healthcare co-workers from Allergy and Immunology Section-HMC, and Dr. Mohamed G.H. Mohamedali, Mr. Hassen Maatoug, and Mr. Ahmed Soliman from Hezm Mebairek General Hospital-HMC for developing disposable racks for samples transportation, tubes labeling, blood collection, and handling. We thank the support provided by Qatar University Biomedical Research Centre, Biosafety Level 3, and Associate Professor Hadi M. Yassine (M.Sc., Ph.D.). We also acknowledge the help of the Anti-Doping Lab-Qatar (ADLQ) and Qatar Red Crescent (QRC) for recruiting control samples. This work was supported by a grant fund from Hamad Medical Corporation (fund number MRC-05-003) and core funding from Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI).Scopu

Global prevalence and genotype distribution of hepatitis C virus infection in 2015 : A modelling study

Publisher Copyright: © 2017 Elsevier LtdBackground The 69th World Health Assembly approved the Global Health Sector Strategy to eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection by 2030, which can become a reality with the recent launch of direct acting antiviral therapies. Reliable disease burden estimates are required for national strategies. This analysis estimates the global prevalence of viraemic HCV at the end of 2015, an update of—and expansion on—the 2014 analysis, which reported 80 million (95% CI 64–103) viraemic infections in 2013. Methods We developed country-level disease burden models following a systematic review of HCV prevalence (number of studies, n=6754) and genotype (n=11 342) studies published after 2013. A Delphi process was used to gain country expert consensus and validate inputs. Published estimates alone were used for countries where expert panel meetings could not be scheduled. Global prevalence was estimated using regional averages for countries without data. Findings Models were built for 100 countries, 59 of which were approved by country experts, with the remaining 41 estimated using published data alone. The remaining countries had insufficient data to create a model. The global prevalence of viraemic HCV is estimated to be 1·0% (95% uncertainty interval 0·8–1·1) in 2015, corresponding to 71·1 million (62·5–79·4) viraemic infections. Genotypes 1 and 3 were the most common cause of infections (44% and 25%, respectively). Interpretation The global estimate of viraemic infections is lower than previous estimates, largely due to more recent (lower) prevalence estimates in Africa. Additionally, increased mortality due to liver-related causes and an ageing population may have contributed to a reduction in infections. Funding John C Martin Foundation.publishersversionPeer reviewe