Spatial analysis of development potential in South Africa : a study of theory and methods for the spatial analysis of urban and regional systems in the South African context

Space in all its aspects is a central concern of planning research. The common sense view of space - determined by height, length and breadth - is giving way to a richer concept . Physical space seems to be merely one aspect of the multi-dimensional framework within which men and women carry out their daily activities. It is becoming possible to visualize social and economic spaces, where distances are measured in unfamiliar terms that have little to do with feet and inches. One begins to sense, very dimly, how one kind of space is warped and transformed as it moves through time - or interacts with another kind of space. My first contact with these ideas occurred during a regional study in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at U.C.T. The problems of analyzing these spaces and describing the structural relationships and interactions between them, prompted me to continue the work of that project in the form of a thesis

Social prescribing for frequent attenders in primary care:an economic analysis

BACKGROUND: Social prescribing (SP) is a mechanism to link patients with community groups and third sector organizations. It offers a complimentary approach to the traditional medical models to address psychosocial needs of patients more effectively and in turn aims to reduce demand on the NHS. The aim of this study was to explore the economic benefits related to changes in the use of healthcare resources following a social prescribing intervention in four primary care practices in Wales. METHODS: Quantitative data from routine healthcare usage was collected from the 78 participants pre and post-intervention. The participants were grouped into frequent attenders (FA) (n = 21) and frequent (n = 57) non-attenders (FNA), and a cost analysis was conducted to estimate cost variances based on healthcare unit usage over the length of the pilot intervention. These were then extrapolated forward to identify potential healthcare savings. RESULTS: The SP as an intervention generated the largest cost saving for FAs. The cost variance when FAs participated in the intervention shows there is a direct cost saving of £6,113 or £78.37 per participant over the 5 months of the intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest there may be a cost saving associated with SP interventions, however caution should be exercised in interpreting the results due to the lack of control group in this study The cost saving were largest for FAs, where the intervention reduced healthcare unit usage as well as actual and inferred impact on associated healthcare costs. This suggests that in practice to generate the maximum cost benefit SP interventions could be targeted at FAs

Assessing safety culture and safety performance in a high hazard industry

In the UK 27 million working days are lost due to work-related illness or injury; at an estimate of £13.4 billion to the economy. Over the last 30 years researchers have examined safety culture and its relationship to poor safety performance. An organisation in the high hazard construction industry wanted to understand the factors that shaped and influenced safety performance and safety culture. This thesis details a research project which addresses that aim. A multi-method, triangulated approach was adopted combining both qualitative (focus groups and interviews) and quantitative (safety climate questionnaire) methods. The results of the qualitative studies informed the development of the safety climate questionnaire that included a measure of self-reported accidents and near misses. The qualitative studies identified 6 main themes; Communication, Leadership, Employee Engagement & Involvement, Safety Prioritisation, Job Demands and Culture. Quantitative study results show, Upward Communication, Perceived Organisational Support (POS), Employee Engagement. Leader Member Exchange (LMX) and Organisational Commitment demonstrate a significant relationship with Safety Climate. Safety Climate, POS had a Significant, positive, predictive relationship with both accidents and near misses reported. Upward communication had a significant negative, predictive relationship with accidents and near misses. LMX and Organisational Commitment show a Significant, negative, predictive relationship with accidents reported only. Results can be explained in the context of social exchange relationships. Reporting behaviour is being measured, this can be conceptualised as organisational safety citizenship behaviour. The probability of increasing or reducing reporting behaviours is shaped by social exchanges such as; a) the degree that employees feel supported by the organisation, b) and their manager, c) the safety climate, d) their commitment levels e) and opportunities to raise safety concerns. Interventions should aim to develop leaders and organisational practices to be more supportive, to increase reporting behaviour and to create a more accurate picture of safety performance