Optimal allocation of blood products

The high cost of collection and the short shelf life of apheresis platelets demand efficient inventory management to reduce outdates and shortages. Apheresis platelets are licensed for seven days, and blood centers are keen on knowing the consequences of various product collection and distribution strategies. To reduce outdates, inventory managers typically distribute the older units first, thereby following first-in first-out (FIFO) policy; however, hospital blood banks would prefer that the blood center issues out the freshest units first, equivalent to a last-in first-out (LIFO) policy. This study addresses the optimal distribution policy to achieve a desired outdate, shortage and average age of apheresis platelets. A comprehensive literature review was conducted on previous models studied to efficiently distribute blood products. However, most of the research on blood inventory management has been restricted to the hospital blood bank level in terms of ordering policies and inventory levels. This study takes the approach from the perspective of the inventory manager at the regional blood center. The inventory manager needs a reliable forecast of the quantity and timing of future blood supply (collection from donors) and blood demand from hospital blood banks to make an effective decision on blood inventory control. A forecasting method is used in this study to predict collection and demand for Single Donor Platelets (SDPs), and solves the blood inventory problem using a heuristic method and a Linear Programming (LP) with a rolling horizon method to find the near optimal issuing policy, the expected average age, outdate rate, and shortage rate of a blood product from the perspective of the blood center. It is concluded that regional blood centers can distribute with a ‘mixed’ FIFO/LIFO strategy and not significantly affect outdates or ability to cover shortages. For the LP model with a rolling horizon schedule, the inventory manager at the blood center would have to use forecast windows of five to achieve good issuing policies. A simulation study comparing the heuristic method and an LP-based with a rolling horizon method indicated that LP models with forecast windows of five and heuristics methods with a ‘mixed’ FIFO/LIFO strategy can be used to optimize this inventory problem

Resolving Stakeholder Challenges in the Higher Education System

The purpose of this paper is to study how to resolve conflicts among major the stakeholders using the Kano et al. (1984) model so as to improve the quality of higher education (HE)

A Study of Sexual Dysfunction among Male Alcohol Dependent Patients.

Introduction: Drinking alcohol is a socially accepted one and thought to Provide relaxation and pleasure. Some people consume alcohol without Experiencing any harmful effects. The common reasons for alcohol Consumption are pleasure, relaxation, mood change, to increase creativity, Intoxication, addiction, forgetting sorrows or for thirst-quenching. But, a Significant proportion of people experience physical, psychological and Social adverse effects of alcohol. It is clear, however, that as the average Daily consumption of alcohol consumed and frequency of intoxication Increase, so does the incidence of physical and psychosocial problems. The medical complications due to alcohol are a consequence of its toxic And ability to cause dependence. Alcohol dependence syndrome is one of the most common and Most researched illness among psychiatric disorders. In India Epidemiological studies have shown a prevalence rate of 16-50% for Alcoholism. Excessive and chronic consumption of alcohol increases the Risk of psychiatric disorders like depression, anxiety, psychosis, Dependence syndrome, memory disturbance and an increased risk of Suicide. Both acute and chronic heavy consumption can contribute to a Wide range of social problems including domestic violence and marital Problems, child abuse and neglect, absenteeism and job loss. The relationship between alcohol consumption and sexual Dysfunction is complex. Most persons prefer alcohol before sexual Activity due to its disinhibiting property and alcohol is believed to be a Powerful sexual facilitator and aphrodisiac. Alcohol has been considered As a risk factor for sexual dysfunctions in several textbooks, review Articles or in clinical teaching. Possible mechanisms that leads to sexual Dysfunction in alcoholics includes: altered metabolism of testosterone, Hepatic dysfunction ,alteration of HPG axis function, direct depressant Effect of alcohol, neurotoxic effect, interpersonal factors due to alcohol Consumption Chronic alcohol abuse is a well known factor, which induce Sexual dysfunction, which leads to marked distress and interpersonal Problems between partners. This, in turn worsens the alcohol abuse as a Vicious cycle. Chronic alcohol consumption has systemic effects that can Lead to changes in sexual function. These changes persist even after Alcohol has been completely removed from system. In some cases sexual Dysfunction may be due to reversible vagal neuropathy, and the Dysfunction may be reversed with abstinence. DSM-IV has a separate entity as substance induced sexual Dysfunction. It specified that the sexual dysfunction should develop During or within a month of withdrawal of alcohol, which should be Enough to produce significant distress and interpersonal problems. The Substance of interest should be etiologically related to the sexual Disturbance. It also mentioned that the sexual dysfunction is not better Accounted for any other substances or medication or psychiatric, medical Illness. The specification includes with impaired desire, impaired arousal, Impaired orgasm, and with sexual pain. It also mentioned the following Sexual dysfunctions in men (302) which are the main concern of our Study which includes: Hypoactive sexual desire disorder Male erectile disorder Male orgasmic disorder Premature ejaculation Sexual aversion disorde

Investigation of in situ physical properties of surface and subsurface site materials by engineering geophysical techniques Annual report

Seismic energy spectrum and attenuation studied in Arizona geological formations for application to lunar surface investigation

An exploratory study looking at the relationship marketing techniques used in the music festival industry

There are current issues and trends in the music festival market, which may affect the success of an event, and market saturation is at the forefront of these issues. Previous literature, maintaining the need for a marketing approach to festivals, identifi es the need for maintaining strong stakeholder relationships in order to succeed in a business environment; attention has been focused to the theory of relationship marketing (RM) because of the recognition that this practice is complementary to the marketing of festivals. The very nature of the music festival as an annual, usually, 4-day event means that effective marketing is needed to keep connections with the consumer throughout the year. This article focuses on the RM techniques utilised within the music festival industry from the viewpoint of the festival organiser in an attempt to establish how festival organisations value and monitor organisational relationships. This article explores the extent to which these relationships are valued and managed; furthermore, the variations between these intricate relationships are considered by focusing on those held with the organisation ’ s consumers and sponsors, the results of which have provided the ability to establish the importance and relevance of RM to the industry and further identify the marketing communication methods employed to establish and maintain such relationships. In-depth, convergent interviews have been conducted with a segment of music festival organisers from a range of events. The results have been integrated with the study of current literature to best exemplify these issues. It has been established that RM has a strong role in today ’ s commercial and independent music festival industry; technological advances are enabling the organiser to support online relationships further and increase consumer loyalty. There is a need to expand the research further because of the complexity of organisational relationships and the varying categories of festivals

Asymmetric Synthesis and Biological Screening of Quinoxaline-Containing Synthetic Lipoxin A₄ Mimetics (QNX-sLXms)

Failure to resolve inflammation underlies many prevalent pathologies. Recent insights have identified lipid mediators, typified by lipoxins (LXs), as drivers of inflammation resolution, suggesting potential therapeutic benefit. We report the asymmetric preparation of novel quinoxaline-containing synthetic-LXA4-mimetics (QNX-sLXms). Eight novel compounds were screened for their impact on inflammatory responses. Structure–activity relationship (SAR) studies showed that (R)-6 (also referred to as AT-02-CT) was the most efficacious and potent anti-inflammatory compound of those tested. (R)-6 significantly attenuated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)- and tumor-necrosis-factor-α (TNF-α)-induced NF-κB activity in monocytes and vascular smooth muscle cells. The molecular target of (R)-6 was investigated. (R)-6 activated the endogenous LX receptor formyl peptide receptor 2 (ALX/FPR2). The anti-inflammatory properties of (R)-6 were further investigated in vivo in murine models of acute inflammation. Consistent with in vitro observations, (R)-6 attenuated inflammatory responses. These results support the therapeutic potential of the lead QNX-sLXm (R)-6 in the context of novel inflammatory regulators

Asymmetric Synthesis and Biological Screening of Quinoxaline-Containing Synthetic Lipoxin A4 Mimetics (QNX-sLXms)

Failure to resolve inflammation underlies many prevalent pathologies. Recent insights have identified lipid mediators, typified by lipoxins (LXs), as drivers of inflammation resolution, suggesting potential therapeutic benefit. We report the asymmetric preparation of novel quinoxaline-containing syntheticLXA4-mimetics (QNX-sLXms). Eight novel compounds were screened for their impact on inflammatory responses. Structure− activity relationship (SAR) studies showed that (R)-6 (also referred to as AT-02-CT) was the most efficacious and potent anti-inflammatory compound of those tested. (R)-6 significantly attenuated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)- and tumor-necrosis-factor-α (TNF-α)-induced NF-κB activity in monocytes and vascular smooth muscle cells. The molecular target of (R)-6 was investigated. (R)-6 activated the endogenous LX receptor formyl peptide receptor 2 (ALX/FPR2). The anti-inflammatory properties of (R)-6 were further investigated in vivo in murine models of acute inflammation. Consistent with in vitro observations, (R)-6 attenuated inflammatory responses. These results support the therapeutic potential of the lead QNX-sLXm (R)-6 in the context of novel inflammatory regulators