SYSTEMATIC APPROACHES FOR ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING - A LITERATURE REVIEW

The activity of developing high-quality information systems (IS) is a highly volatile and knowledge- intensive process. Nonetheless, only few IS developing companies seem to be advanced in evaluating and processing their knowledge. Despite a variety of existing approaches, there is no systematic overview of these and how far they support organisational learning. We conduct a systematic literature review of highly ranked journals and relevant textbooks to provide such an overview. We provide a list of eight systematic learning approaches and analyse how they contribute to the activities of knowledge creation, retention and transfer. Thereby, we aim to improve the current situation of organisational learning in IS developing companies. Whereas organisations need to become more open to systematic organisational learning approaches, research is in need to evaluate existing approaches and develop holistic strategies for building learning organisations

Radiation exposure of eyes, thyroid gland and hands in orthopaedic staff: a systematic review

BACKGROUND: Various procedures, especially minimal invasive techniques using fluoroscopy, pose a risk of radiation exposure to orthopaedic staff. Anatomical sites such as the eyes, thyroid glands and hands are more vulnerable to radiation considering the limited use of personal protective devices in the workplace. The objective of the study is to assess the annual mean cumulative and per procedure radiation dose received at anatomical locations like eyes, thyroid glands and hands in orthopaedic staff using systematic review. METHODS: The review of literature was conducted using systematic search of the database sources like PUBMED and EMBASE using appropriate keywords. The eligibility criteria and the data extraction of literature were based on study design (cohort or cross-sectional study), study population (orthopaedic surgeons or their assistants), exposure (doses of workplace radiation exposure at hands/fingers, eye/forehead, neck/thyroid), language (German and English). The literature search was conducted using a PRISMA checklist and flow chart. RESULTS: Forty-two articles were found eligible and included for the review. The results show that radiation doses for the anatomical locations of eye, thyroid gland and hands were lower than the dose levels recommended. But there is a considerable variation of radiation dose received at all three anatomical locations mainly due to different situations including procedures (open and minimally invasive), work experience (junior and senior surgeons),distance from the primary and secondary radiation, and use of personal protective equipments (PPEs). The surgeons receive higher radiation dose during minimally invasive procedures compared to open procedures. Junior surgeons are at higher risk of radiation exposure compared to seniors. PPEs play a significant role in reduction of radiation dose. CONCLUSIONS: Although the current radiation precautions appear to be adequate based on the low dose radiation, more in-depth studies are required on the variations of radiation dose in orthopaedic staff, at different anatomical locations and situations

Voltammetric determination of indomenthyl

Cytokines are important mediators coordinating inflammation and wound healing in response to tissue damage and infection. Therefore, immobilization of cytokines on the surface of biomaterials is a promising approach to improve biocompatibility. Soluble cytokines signal through receptors on the cell surface leading to cell differentiation, proliferation, or other effector functions. Random immobilization of cytokines on surfaces will result in a large fraction of inactive protein due to impaired cytokine-receptor interaction. We developed a strategy that combined (i) directed covalent coupling of cytokines, (ii) quantification of coupling efficiency through fluorescence detection, and (iii) a reliable protease cleavage assay to control orientation of coupling. For this purpose, fusion proteins of the SNAP-tag followed by an enterokinase recognition site, yellow fluorescent protein (YFP), and the cytokine of interest being either interleukin-6 (IL-6) or oncostatin M (OSM) were generated. The SNAP-tag is a derivative of O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase that couples itself covalently to benzylguanine. Bioactivities of the SNAP-YFP-cytokines were shown to be comparable with the nontagged cytokines. Efficient coupling of SNAP-YFP-cytokines to benzylguanine-modified beads was demonstrated by flow cytometry. The fact that enterokinase treatment released most of the fluorescence from the beads is indicative for directed coupling and only marginal adsorptive binding. Cellular responses to SNAP-YFP-cytokine beads were analyzed in cellular lysates and by confocal microscopy indicating that the directionally immobilized cytokines are fully signaling competent with respect to the activation of ERK and STAT3. The strategy presented here is generally applicable for the directed covalent immobilization of fluorescently labeled proteins including the convenient and reliable control of coupling efficiency and orientation

MRSA prevalence in european healthcare settings: a review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>During the past two decades, methicillin-resistant <it>Staphylococcus aureus </it>(MRSA) has become increasingly common as a source of nosocomial infections. Most studies of MRSA surveillance were performed during outbreaks, so that results are not applicable to settings in which MRSA is endemic. This paper gives an overview of MRSA prevalence in hospitals and other healthcare institutions in non-outbreak situations in Western Europe.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A keyword search was conducted in the Medline database (2000 through June 2010). Titles and abstracts were screened to identify studies on MRSA prevalence in patients in non-outbreak situations in European healthcare facilities. Each study was assessed using seven quality criteria (outcome definition, time unit, target population, participants, observer bias, screening procedure, swabbing sites) and categorized as 'good', 'fair', or 'poor'.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>31 observational studies were included in the review. Four of the studies were of good quality. Surveillance screening of MRSA was performed in long-term care (11 studies) and acute care (20 studies). Prevalence rates varied over a wide range, from less than 1% to greater than 20%. Prevalence in the acute care and long-term care settings was comparable. The prevalence of MRSA was expressed in various ways - the percentage of MRSA among patients (range between 1% and 24%), the percentage of MRSA among <it>S. aureus </it>isolates (range between 5% and 54%), and as the prevalence density (range between 0.4 and 4 MRSA cases per 1,000 patient days). The screening policy differed with respect to time points (on admission or during hospital stay), selection criteria (all admissions or patients at high risk for MRSA) and anatomical sampling sites.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This review underlines the methodological differences between studies of MRSA surveillance. For comparisons between different healthcare settings, surveillance methods and outcome calculations should be standardized.</p

Indications and outcome of repeat penetrating keratoplasty in India

BACKGROUND: Repeat penetrating keratoplasty is quite often required as there is high chance of failure of the primary graft particularly in the developing world. We planned a study to analyze the indications and outcome of repeat penetrating keratoplasty in a tertiary care centre in India. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of all the patients who underwent repeat penetrating keratoplasty, between January 1999 and December 2001 was performed. The parameters evaluated were indication for the primary penetrating keratoplasty, causes of failure of the previous graft, and final visual outcome and clarity of the repeat corneal grafts. RESULTS: Of fifty-three eyes of 50 patients with repeat penetrating keratoplasty (three patients underwent bilateral corneal regrafts), 37 eyes had undergone one regraft each, 14 eyes two regrafts and two eyes had three regrafts. The follow-up of the patients ranged from one to three years. The most common primary etiologic diagnosis was vascularized corneal scars (66%), of which the scars related to infection were most common (68.5%). Twenty-eight regrafts (52.8%) remained clear at a mean follow-up of 1.54 ± 0.68 years, of which 25 were single regrafts (89.3%). The commonest cause of failure of regraft was infection to the corneal graft (recurrence of herpetic infection in 9 eyes and perforated graft ulcers in 3 eyes). Three (18.6%) of the 16 eyes with multiple corneal regrafts achieved a BCVA of 6/60. Overall, only five eyes (all with single regraft) achieved a BCVA of 6/18 or better at the end of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Graft infection is the leading cause of failure of repeat keratoplasty in this part of the world. Prognosis for visual recovery and graft survival is worse in eyes undergoing multiple regrafts