Private Sector Credit, Policy and Enforcement: 1978-1982. Quarterly Economic Commentary Special Article, May 1983

This paper is concerned with exammmg certain aspects of the Central Bank's quantitative credit guidelines over the period 1978 to 1982. The sectoral or personal lending guidelines are not considered in this paper. The approach is to consider first the policy aspects to the guidelines and in particular the relationship between the guideline and the external reserve objective. Secondly, the issue of neutralization of interest rates is discussed and some evidence is presented on this matter. Finally, the paper examines how Central Bank enforcement may act as an indicator of the existence and timing of credit rationing and concludes by demonstrating how policy and enforcement combined to cause a reduction in the Associated Banks' relative lending share

A comparative framework: how broadly applicable is a 'rigorous' critical junctures framework?

The paper tests Hogan and Doyle's (2007, 2008) framework for examining critical junctures. This framework sought to incorporate the concept of ideational change in understanding critical junctures. Until its development, frameworks utilized in identifying critical junctures were subjective, seeking only to identify crisis, and subsequent policy changes, arguing that one invariably led to the other, as both occurred around the same time. Hogan and Doyle (2007, 2008) hypothesized ideational change as an intermediating variable in their framework, determining if, and when, a crisis leads to radical policy change. Here we test this framework on cases similar to, but different from, those employed in developing the exemplar. This will enable us determine whether the framework's relegation of ideational change to a condition of crisis holds, or, if ideational change has more importance than is ascribed to it by this framework. This will also enable us determined if the framework itself is robust, and fit for the purposes it was designed to perform — identifying the nature of policy change

Argonne National Laboratory Reports

This report presents two detailed computerized operating procedures developed to assist and control the shearing and dissolution of irradiated fuel rods. The procedures were employed in the destructive analysis of end-of-life fuel rods from the Light Water Breeder Reactor (LWBR) that was designed by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory. Seventeen entire fuel rods from the end-of-life core of the LWBR were sheared into 169 precisely characterized segments, and more than 150 of these segments were dissolved during execution of the LWBR Proof-of-Breeding (LWBR-POB) Analytical Support Project at Argonne National Laboratory. The procedures illustrate our approaches to process monitoring, data reduction, and quality assurance during the LWBR-POB work

Population-based analysis of POT1 variants in a cutaneous melanoma case–control cohort

Article describes how pathogenic germline variants in the protection of telomeres 1 gene (POT1) have been associated with predisposition to a range of tumor types, including melanoma, glioma, leukemia and cardiac angiosarcoma. The authors sequenced all coding exons of the POT1 gene in 2928 European-descent melanoma cases and 3298 controls, identifying 43 protein-changing genetic variants

User's perspectives of barriers and facilitators to implementing quality colonoscopy services in Canada: a study protocol

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Colorectal cancer (CRC) represents a serious and growing health problem in Canada. Colonoscopy is used for screening and diagnosis of symptomatic or high CRC risk individuals. Although a number of countries are now implementing quality colonoscopy services, knowledge synthesis of barriers and facilitators perceived by healthcare professionals and patients during implementation has not been carried out. In addition, the perspectives of various stakeholders towards the implementation of quality colonoscopy services and the need of an efficient organisation of such services have been reported in the literature but have not been synthesised yet. The present study aims to produce a comprehensive synthesis of actual knowledge on the barriers and facilitators perceived by all stakeholders to the implementation of quality colonoscopy services in Canada.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>First, we will conduct a comprehensive review of the scientific literature and other published documentation on the barriers and facilitators to implementing quality colonoscopy services. Standardised literature searches and data extraction methods will be used. The quality of the studies and their relevance to informing decisions on colonoscopy services implementation will be assessed. For each group of users identified, barriers and facilitators will be categorised and compiled using narrative synthesis and meta-analytical techniques. The principle factors identified for each group of users will then be validated for its applicability to various Canadian contexts using the Delphi study method. Following this study, a set of strategies will be identified to inform decision makers involved in the implementation of quality colonoscopy services across Canadian jurisdictions.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>This study will be the first to systematically summarise the barriers and facilitators to implementation of quality colonoscopy services perceived by different groups and to consider the local contexts in order to ensure the applicability of this knowledge to the particular realities of various Canadian jurisdictions. Linkages with strategic partners and decision makers in the realisation of this project will favour the utilisation of its results to support strategies for implementing quality colonoscopy services and CRC screening programs in the Canadian health system.</p

Ghana health services and the Irish health system – bridging the gap

The University of Limerick Hospitals Group (ULHG), and the University of Limerick (UL), are committed to fostering links with the developing world and contributing to solutions of the challenges these countries face. In 2016 a group from UL and ULHG visited the Upper West Region of Ghana to explore the possibility of establishing a partnership with Ghana Health Services (GHS). In this article, we describe aspects of GHS and outline some of the challenges for Irish institutions trying to engage with the realties of the developing world