WEB service interfaces for inter-organisational business processes an infrastructure for automated reconciliation

For the majority of front-end e-business systems, the assumption of a coherent and homogeneous set of interfaces is highly unrealistic. Problems start in the back-end, with systems characterised by a heterogeneous mix of applications and business processes. Integration can be complex and expensive, as systems evolve more in accordance with business needs than with technical architectures. E-business systems are faced with the challenge to give a coherent image of a diversified reality. Web services make business interfaces more efficient, but effectiveness is a business requirement of at least comparable importance. We propose a technique for automatic reconciliation of the Web service interfaces involved in inter-organisational business processes. The working assumption is that the Web service front-end of each company is represented by a set of WSDL and WSCL interfaces. The result of our reconciliation method is a common interface that all the parties can effectively enforce. Indications are also given on ways to adapt individual interfaces to the common one. The technique was embodied in a prototype that we also present

Homeless Persons\u27 Residential Preferences and Needs: A Pilot Survey

The 2003 Pilot Survey of Residential Preferences and Needs sampled individuals with psychiatric difficulties at three large generic shelters for adult individuals in Boston and one of four transitional shelters funded by the Metro Boston Region of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health. The survey measured: homeless persons’ residential preferences; the residential recommendations of shelter-based clinicians for these homeless persons; clinicians’ assessments of these persons’ living skills and safety. Respondents at the DMH shelter were somewhat more satisfied with their shelter and with the people who stayed there than were those at the generic shelters. The DMH shelter users were less satisfied with the level of freedom they had at the shelter than were the generic shelter users. Respondents were eager to move into regular housing. Almost all sought to live on their own, but more than half were interested in some level of staff support. Most felt capable of managing the tasks of daily living, but there were particular concerns about filling out forms and budgeting. Clinicians were much less confident in the ability of the homeless respondents to live independently. The clinicians’ residential recommendations were not correlated with the residential preferences of the homeless persons themselves. Clinicians in the DMH shelters rated their clients as somewhat more sociable and compliant with psychotropic medication than did clinicians rating the generic shelter clients. Respondents who were most eager to live independently but whose clinicians identified a relatively high need for support tended to be more intrusive and were more likely to be substance abusers. Levels of substance abuse and intrusiveness declined somewhat between baseline and the four-month followup for the DMH shelter residents (there was no followup assessment in the generic shelters)

Phenomenological study of low-income students formerly pursuing baccalaureate degrees with the assistance of a private foundation scholarship, A

2013 Summer.Includes bibliographical references.This qualitative study investigated the lived experience of at-risk students who were funded by a private foundation scholarship but who lost that funding for a variety of reasons. Data were collected through personal interviews with seven former scholars. The themes emerging from the study included: educational aspirations, the scholarship opportunity, the college experience, and conscious reflection. Implications of this study may be applicable to private gifting foundations as they establish scholarship guidelines and student support systems, faculty and college staff while working with students from underprivileged backgrounds and attempting to understand their complex college journey. Additionally college students and their families may benefit from this study as they learn to maneuver through the complexities of college, specifically as it relates being a first generation college student

Homeless Persons\u27 Interest in Basic and Health Services: The Role of Absolute, Relative, and Repressed Needs

This study describes and explains the interest of homeless persons in housing, economic, and health-related services with intake interview data collected by a large urban shelter for single adults. Shelter guests were most interested in assistance with housing, job, and economic benefits, rather than health services. Three explanations of variation in service interests are identified: the absolute needs explanation expects service interests to vary directly with service needs, the repressed needs explanation expects service interests to vary inversely with alcoholism and mental illness, while the relative needs explanation expects interest in health-related services to be related to health needs, but only after basic needs are satisfied. The absolute needs explanation receives the strongest support

Case Management in the Women’s Health Network: A Comprehensive Evaluation

The Women’s Health Network (WHN), a program of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, provides screening examinations to income-eligible women for the early detection of breast and cervical cancer and cardiovascular disease risk. The Women’s Health Network breast and cervical cancer program component is funded in part by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and in part by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP). The Women’s Health Network Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program (HDSPP) is funded by the CDC’s Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation program (WISEWOMAN). The Department of Public Health administers the WHN and contracts with health care organizations to deliver program services in different areas of the state

Mentally Ill Persons in Emergency and Specialized Shelters: Satisfaction and Distress

Emergency and specialized mental health shelters represent different service philosophies and are meant to appeal to different segments of the homeless and homeless mentally ill population. This article describes the different characteristics and needs of users of emergency and specialized mental health shelters for homeless persons in Boston. Service satisfaction is described in relation to these characteristics and needs as well as in terms of shelter type. Implications are identified for social and mental health service policies for the homeless

Influences on Job Retention Among Homeless Persons with Substance Abuse or Psychiatric Disabilities

Job retention is an important psychosocial rehabilitation goal, but one that is not often achieved. We investigate facilitators of and barriers to employment retention among homeless individuals with psychiatric and substance abuse diagnoses who were re-interviewed eight or more years after participating in a traditional vocational rehabilitation program. Most program graduates who maintained employment had secured social support from a variety of sources; personal motivation was also a critical element in job retention and compensated in some cases for an absence of social support. Both the availability of social support contacts and personal motivation influenced likelihood of maintaining sobriety. Physical health problems prevented continued employment for several individuals despite social support and desire to work, while receipt of disability benefits seemed to reduce work motivation

Updates on Pairing Issues with the US Antarctic Meteorite Collection

The US Antarctic meteorite program has re-covered >21,000 meteorites since 1976, with thousands of those recovered from several icefields over multiple seasons, some-times spanning over a decade [1]. Pairing is assigned as best as possible at the time of classification, based on information from the field team, macro-scale hand sample features in the lab, and petrography, but later focused studies can reveal details that suggest re-evaluation of pairing groups. As a result, pairing groups are revealed over time, and must be continuously updated. Here we examine a few groups with known issues and give an update on some of the larger or more significant pairing groups

Patterns and predictors of engagement in peer support among homeless veterans with mental health conditions and substance use histories

OBJECTIVES: Patterns and predictors of engagement in peer support services were examined among 50 previously homeless veterans with co-occurring mental health conditions and substance use histories receiving services from the Veterans Health Administration supported housing program. METHOD: Veteran peer specialists were trained to deliver sessions focusing on mental health and substance use recovery to veterans for an intended 1-hr weekly contact over 9 months. Trajectories of peer engagement over the study\u27s duration are summarized. A mixed-effects log-linear model of the rate of peer engagement is tested with three sets of covariates representing characteristics of the veterans. These sets were demographics, mental health and substance use status, and indicators of community participation and support. RESULTS: Data indicate that veterans engaged with peers about once per month rather than the intended once per week. However, frequency of contacts varied greatly. The best predictor of engagement was time, with most contacts occurring within the first 6 months. No other veteran characteristic was a statistically significant predictor of engagement. Older veterans tended to have higher rates of engagement with peer supporters. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Planners of peer support services could consider yardsticks of monthly services up to 6 months. Peer support services need a flexible strategy with varying levels of intensity according to need. Peer support services will need to be tailored to better engage younger veterans. Future research should consider other sources of variation in engagement with peer support such as characteristics of the peer supporters and service content and setting

Male or Female? The Answer Depends on When You Ask

Over 80 years ago, Bridges came to the conclusion that sex inDrosophila is determined by the X:A ratio. Doubts about this hypothesis are raised by taking a molecular look at how--and when--sex is determined