Crisis Communication Response for Field Offices of the Airline Pilots Association

This project-based thesis examines the issue of crisis management, focusing on communication as an integral part of an organization\u27s response to crisis. It explores the benefits of a crisis communication plan to successfully respond to a crisis situation and explores the components, writing style and considerations of a manual that make such a plan useable. This research highlights these communication challenges in relation to the airline industry, and more specifically, to the branch offices of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), by applying the information gathered into a written crisis communication manual. Chapter one of this thesis discusses the importance of effective and efficient communication in the aftermath of a crisis and the necessity for organizations to prepare for a crisis situation through the creation, maintenance and practice of a crisis communication manual. The chapter discusses the difficul6es of creating a crisis communication manual specific to an organization and uses the research to outline general guidelines that form the basis of every crisis plan. It also introduces the specific challenges of the airline industry in the event of a major crisis, illustrating these challenges by detailing ALP A\u27s response to the crash of TWA\u27s Flight 800. The literature-based research is detailed in chapter two, highlighting each source, its focus and level of detail. However, understanding the stress, confusion and numerous responsibilities to consider in the aftermath of a crisis is difficult to learn through this written medium. For this reason, a number of personal interviews with pilots and ALPA staff members who responded to TWA\u27s Flight 800 were conducted during the research process, and detailed in chapter three. These interviews provide an inside look at the successes and pitfalls of a specific response to a crisis in the airline industry. They also provide a detailed view of how ALPA field offices function in times of crisis, thus contributing to the conceptualization of how a crisis communication manual should be written specific to the organization. The suggestions and guidance gathered from literature written on the subject of crisis communication, coupled with the advice from those pilots and ALPA staff who responded to Flight 800, are applied in chapter four to create an actual crisis communication manual for ALPA branch offices. Through a series of checklists and expanded information sections, this manual focuses on four possible crisis scenarios including an airplane crash, a criminal act, a major mechanical incident and a pilot incident. Eliciting the editorial assistance of pilots and ALPA staff members resulted in a crisis communication manual that is specific to the airline industry and the offices of ALPA. These individuals agree, as reported in chapter five, that the steps outlined in the manual are consistent with ALPA pilot and staff responsibilities, are developed in an accessible fom1at, and will provide needed guidance to ALPA branch offices during times of crisis. This manual serves as a work in progress and must be continually updated, practiced and supported by all individuals involved to successfully aid in crisis response

Comparison of Kaposi Sarcoma risk in human immunodeficiency virus-positive adults across 5 continents: A multiregional multicohort study

Background: We compared Kaposi sarcoma (KS) risk in adults who started antiretroviral therapy (ART) across the Asia-Pacific, South Africa, Europe, Latin, and North America. Methods: We included cohort data of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive adults who started ART after 1995 within the framework of 2 large collaborations of observational HIV cohorts. We present incidence rates and adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs). Results: We included 208 140 patients from 57 countries. Over a period of 1 066 572 person-years, 2046 KS cases were diagnosed. KS incidence rates per 100 000 person-years were 52 in the Asia-Pacific and ranged between 180 and 280 in the other regions. KS risk was 5 times higher in South African women (aHR, 4.56; 95% confidence intervals [CI], 2.73-7.62) than in their European counterparts, and 2 times higher in South African men (2.21; 1.34-3.63). In Europe, Latin, and North America KS risk was 6 times higher in men who have sex with men (aHR, 5.95; 95% CI, 5.09-6.96) than in women. Comparing patients with current CD4 cell counts 65700 cells/\u3bcL with those whose counts were <50 cells/\u3bcL, the KS risk was halved in South Africa (aHR, 0.53; 95% CI, .17-1.63) but reduced by 6595% in other regions. Conclusions. Despite important ART-related declines in KS incidence, men and women in South Africa and men who have sex with men remain at increased KS risk, likely due to high human herpesvirus 8 coinfection rates. Early ART initiation and maintenance of high CD4 cell counts are essential to further reducing KS incidence worldwide, but additional measures might be needed, especially in Southern Africa

Infections with Immunogenic Trypanosomes Reduce Tsetse Reproductive Fitness: Potential Impact of Different Parasite Strains on Vector Population Structure

The parasite Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense and its insect vector Glossina morsitans morsitans were used to evaluate the effect of parasite clearance (resistance) as well as the cost of midgut infections on tsetse host fitness. Tsetse flies are viviparous and have a low reproductive capacity, giving birth to only 6–8 progeny during their lifetime. Thus, small perturbations to their reproductive fitness can have a major impact on population densities. We measured the fecundity (number of larval progeny deposited) and mortality in parasite-resistant tsetse females and untreated controls and found no differences. There was, however, a typanosome-specific impact on midgut infections. Infections with an immunogenic parasite line that resulted in prolonged activation of the tsetse immune system delayed intrauterine larval development resulting in the production of fewer progeny over the fly's lifetime. In contrast, parasitism with a second line that failed to activate the immune system did not impose a fecundity cost. Coinfections favored the establishment of the immunogenic parasites in the midgut. We show that a decrease in the synthesis of Glossina Milk gland protein (GmmMgp), a major female accessory gland protein associated with larvagenesis, likely contributed to the reproductive lag observed in infected flies. Mathematical analysis of our empirical results indicated that infection with the immunogenic trypanosomes reduced tsetse fecundity by 30% relative to infections with the non-immunogenic strain. We estimate that a moderate infection prevalence of about 26% with immunogenic parasites has the potential to reduce tsetse populations. Potential repercussions for vector population growth, parasite–host coevolution, and disease prevalence are discussed

The origins of the trypanosome genome strains Trypanosoma brucei brucei TREU 927, T. b. gambiense DAL 972, T. vivax Y486 and T. congolense IL3000

The genomes of several tsetse-transmitted African trypanosomes (Trypanosoma brucei brucei, T. b. gambiense, T. vivax, T. congolense) have been sequenced and are available to search online. The trypanosome strains chosen for the genome sequencing projects were selected because they had been well characterised in the laboratory, but all were isolated several decades ago. The purpose of this short review is to provide some background information on the origins and biological characterisation of these strains as a source of reference for future users of the genome data. With high throughput sequencing of many more trypanosome genomes in prospect, it is important to understand the phylogenetic relationships of the genome strains

Differential Trypanosome Surface Coat Regulation by a CCCH Protein That Co-Associates with procyclin mRNA cis-Elements

The genome of Trypanosoma brucei is unusual in being regulated almost entirely at the post-transcriptional level. In terms of regulation, the best-studied genes are procyclins, which encode a family of major surface GPI-anchored glycoproteins (EP1, EP2, EP3, GPEET) that show differential expression in the parasite's tsetse-fly vector. Although procyclin mRNA cis-regulatory sequences have provided the paradigm for post-transcriptional control in kinetoplastid parasites, trans-acting regulators of procyclin mRNAs are unidentified, despite intensive effort over 15 years. Here we identify the developmental regulator, TbZFP3, a CCCH-class predicted RNA binding protein, as an isoform-specific regulator of Procyclin surface coat expression in trypanosomes. We demonstrate (i) that endogenous TbZFP3 shows sequence-specific co-precipitation of EP1 and GPEET, but not EP2 and EP3, procyclin mRNA isoforms, (ii) that ectopic overexpression of TbZFP3 does not perturb the mRNA abundance of procyclin transcripts, but rather that (iii) their protein expression is regulated in an isoform-specific manner, as evidenced by mass spectrometric analysis of the Procyclin expression signature in the transgenic cell lines. The TbZFP3 mRNA-protein complex (TbZFP3mRNP) is identified as a trans-regulator of differential surface protein expression in trypanosomes. Moreover, its sequence-specific interactions with procyclin mRNAs are compatible with long-established predictions for Procyclin regulation. Combined with the known association of TbZFP3 with the translational apparatus, this study provides a long-sought missing link between surface protein cis-regulatory signals and the gene expression machinery in trypanosomes. © 2009 Walrad et al

A Collective Household Labour Supply Model with Disability: Evidence from Iraq

In this study we explored the determinants of the women’s labour supply and we attempted to identify the sharing rules for married couples. The analysis relied on data derived by the Iraqi Household Socio-Economic Survey (IHSES) in 2012–2013. The study considered the housework contributed by both spouses and we also included the wife’s disability status as a distribution factor. Moreover, we estimated the sharing rules accounting for female non-participation in the labour market. The household collective model was preferred over the unitary model as the results supported that changes on wages, non-labour income, age, education, number of children, and disability as a distribution factor affect the bargaining power and the share of spouses. The findings showed that for a one percent increase on female’s daily wage rate, her share on full income was increased by 1320 Iraqi Dinar (ID) corresponding to $1.12, while reached 1470 ID ($1.25) when the domestic labour was considered. Similarly, increases on the male’s wage increased her share by 630 ID ($0.50), while increases of 1 ID in the non-labour income increased female’s share by 0.43. The estimates showed that the disabled women decreased the share by 1275 ID ($1.08). Furthermore, the findings illustrated that considering the non-participation of the wife in the labour market, her share and therefore her bargaining power was lower than their earner counterparts

Search for Electronic Recoil Event Rate Modulation with 4 Years of XENON100 Data

We report on a search for electronic recoil event rate modulation signatures in the XENON100 data accumulated over a period of 4 years, from January 2010 to January 2014. A profile likelihood method, which incorporates the stability of the XENON100 detector and the known electronic recoil background model, is used to quantify the significance of periodicity in the time distribution of events. There is a weak modulation signature at a period of $431^{+16}_{-14}$ days in the low energy region of $(2.0-5.8)$ keV in the single scatter event sample, with a global significance of $1.9\,\sigma$, however no other more significant modulation is observed. The expected annual modulation of a dark matter signal is not compatible with this result. Single scatter events in the low energy region are thus used to exclude the DAMA/LIBRA annual modulation as being due to dark matter electron interactions via axial vector coupling at $5.7\,\sigma$.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure