Understanding the Influence of Utilitarian and Hedonic Factors on Buying Behaviour of Gen Y while Purchasing Smartphones

The paper focuses on the influence of utilitarian and hedonic factors on the buying behaviour of the Gen Y consumers while purchasing smartphones. The researcher has followed a mixed method approach for the research with a descriptive research design. Primary data was collected through a survey that was conducted with 450 participants which consisted of teenagers and adults aged between 16-30 years. This collected data was then quantified using mathematical tools to come to a conclusion. Secondary data was collected from online published research articles and convenience. The influence of both these factors have a different sense of impact on every individual in the buying process, but post analysis, utilitarian factors gained primacy over hedonic factors

Developing Standard Treatment Workflows—way to universal healthcare in India

Primary healthcare caters to nearly 70% of the population in India and provides treatment for approximately 80–90% of common conditions. To achieve universal health coverage (UHC), the Indian healthcare system is gearing up by initiating several schemes such as National Health Protection Scheme, Ayushman Bharat, Nutrition Supplementation Schemes, and Inderdhanush Schemes. The healthcare delivery system is facing challenges such as irrational use of medicines, over- and under-diagnosis, high out-of-pocket expenditure, lack of targeted attention to preventive and promotive health services, and poor referral mechanisms. Healthcare providers are unable to keep pace with the volume of growing new scientific evidence and rising healthcare costs as the literature is not published at the same pace. In addition, there is a lack of common standard treatment guidelines, workflows, and reference manuals from the Government of India. Indian Council of Medical Research in collaboration with the National Health Authority, Govt. of India, and the WHO India country office has developed Standard Treatment Workflows (STWs) with the objective to be utilized at various levels of healthcare starting from primary to tertiary level care. A systematic approach was adopted to formulate the STWs. An advisory committee was constituted for planning and oversight of the process. Specialty experts' group for each specialty comprised of clinicians working at government and private medical colleges and hospitals. The expert groups prioritized the topics through extensive literature searches and meeting with different stakeholders. Then, the contents of each STW were finalized in the form of single-pager infographics. These STWs were further reviewed by an editorial committee before publication. Presently, 125 STWs pertaining to 23 specialties have been developed. It needs to be ensured that STWs are implemented effectively at all levels and ensure quality healthcare at an affordable cost as part of UHC

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Analyzing the necessity and impacts of organizational culture on the performance of Unilever UK Ltd.

Every business firm has a unique organizational culture that helps in maintaining the internal organizational environment. Having a strong organizational culture, companies can maximize organizational profitability. This academic dissertation aims to analyze the impact of organizational culture on the business performance. Accomplishing the paper’s aim, four objectives have been made by the research scholar. Firstly, the paper analyzes the importance of having good corporate culture in maximizing the organizational performances. Secondly, this research work also states the effect of different types of organizational culture on business performance. Moreover, the paper also critically analyzes the relationship between employee performance and working culture of organizations. Lastly, this dissertation provides some valuable recommendations to business firms in building better organizational culture for positively influencing productivity. In order to examine the effect of corporate culture on organizational performances, the study had taken positivism philosophy and deductive approach. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches have been chosen for this current dissertation in collecting authentic data. From 100 Unilever’s employees, the scholar has gathered quantifiable responses. In addition, the scholar has extracted qualitative data for the study from different journals, articles, research papers, and authorized websites. M.S. Excel spreadsheet and context analysis tool has been used for analyzing the accumulated data for attaining the research purpose. After the analysis, it can be comprehended that culture within organizations helps in fostering a knowledge-sharing environment that supports employees in enhancing their skills and practical knowledge, which influences the productivity of an organization. In a flexible working environment, employees can be successful in showing their talents that help in maximizing overall productivity. All most every leader has visionary skills, and these skills are required for maintaining the internal environment and culture of firms. On the other hand, to manage stakeholders' interest and resolve business issues, business organizations must have a good corporate environment. In boosting team spirit among different functional teams and maximizing productivity, organizations focus on a flexible corporate culture. In earning commitments from the end of employees, every firm must focus on developing the organizational culture. Moreover, for determining business risks and internal conflicts within organizations, firms focus on their corporate culture. Having a flexible working environment, employees have the confidence to share their suggestions to their supervisors regarding the risk management aspect. In seeking the attention of skilled global professionals, corporate culture plays a significant role. Hence, it can be said that corporate culture directly relates to the overall productivity and performance of organizations

Nano-mechanical experiments and analysis of high entropy alloys and single-crystal materials

In recent years, Hight Entropy Alloys (HEA) are becoming ever so popular due to their exceptional mechanical properties, and therefore can be applied for wide applications throughout the industries. The HEA of interest in this paper is HfNbTiZr. The application High- Pressure Torsion (HPT) reduces grain sizes to below 1μm. This significant grain size reductions by means of HPT will increase its strength and some other mechanical properties. The study of this paper consists of producing nanoindentations on an annealed sample, HPT ¼ sample and a HPT5 sample. Firstly, an operational manual for setup, nanoindentation tests in both room temperature and high temperature were established. This manual can be used as a general reference to any tests as it is not specific to any tests. Additionally, post-processing of the data obtained and exported are shown as well. Secondly, based on the manual created, room temperature and high temperature tests are conducted. The results obtained from the tests are processed and analyzed to study the hardness values across varying temperatures and loading rates. The results are studied in conjunction with the grain structures of the samples It was rather noticeable that the grain size has a significant effect on the hardness of the material tested. An improvement in plasticity is also observed by an increase in strain rate sensitivity in the HPT-processed HEAs. The overall hardness values increased as the number of HPT turns are introduced onto the sample as well. However, oxide formation would lead to deviation from the expected results as it causes the hardness values to increase.Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering

Exploring links between vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic remains a major public health threat in most countries. The causative severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus can lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome and result in mortality in COVID-19 patients. Vitamin D is an immunomodulator hormone with established effectiveness against various upper respiratory infections. Vitamin D can stall hyper-inflammatory responses and expedite healing process of the affected areas, primarily in the lung tissue. Thus, there are ecological and mechanistic reasons to promote exploration of vitamin D action in COVID-19 patients. As no curative drugs are available currently for COVID-19, we feel that the potential of vitamin D to alter the course of disease severity needs to be investigated. Clinical studies may be undertaken to address the value of vitamin D supplementation in deficient, high-risk COVID-19 patients

A rare presentation of rhinosporidiosis on buccal mucosa − a case report

Introduction: Rhinosporidiosis is a chronic mucocutaneous infection caused by Rhinosporidium seeberi, which mainly affects the mucus membranes of the nose, oropharynx, skin, eyes, and genital mucosa. The purpose of this case report was to illustrate the importance of clinicians in understanding the unusual incidence of this fungal infection, clinical presentation, treatment modalities, and recurrence rate. Observations: A clinical case report showed rare occurrence of rhinosporidiosis in the lower third of the face. The lesion was surgically excised by electrocauterization at its base. Commentaries: The patient showed no signs of recurrence even after 3 years of follow-up. Further research should be carried out to analyze the role of genetic predisposition in causing zoonotic infection. Conclusion: Rhinosporidiosis should also be considered as the differential diagnosis when facial swelling is encountered

A review of clinical trials registered in India from 2008 to 2022 to describe the first-in-human trials

Aim: This analysis was conducted to review the number, and describe the characteristics of first-in-human (FIH) Phase 1 clinical trials registered in India from 2008 to 2022. Materials and Methods: The data were extracted from the Clinical Trials Registry – India database for all FIH Phase 1 clinical trials registered between 2008 and 2022. Early-phase trials that were not FIH trials (e.g., pharmacokinetic studies and drug–drug interaction studies) were excluded from the study. Results: A total of 1891 trials were retrieved and 220 were included in the analysis. Most of the investigational products were drugs (55%) followed by vaccines (38.2%). The most common therapeutic class of drugs was cancer chemotherapy (19.8%), followed by antimicrobial chemotherapy and endocrinology (18.2% each). The most common vaccine was the influenza vaccine (21.4%), followed by the measles–mumps–rubella vaccine (15.5%). The pharmaceutical industry was the predominant sponsor for most (91%) of the Phase 1 trials. Of the top five sites where most of the Phase 1 trials were conducted, three were private nonacademic centers (cumulatively 31%) and two were tertiary care medical colleges (cumulatively 9%). Conclusion: Phase 1 clinical trials seem to be conducted in India predominantly with industry sponsorship. There is a need to have an alternate ecosystem to take forward molecules that do not receive adequate attention from the industry and molecules that are of national health priority other than areas such as chemotherapy, antimicrobials, and endocrinology. The Indian Council of Medical Research is setting up Phase 1 clinical trial capacity for molecules that predominantly may arise from nonindustry channels