Classification of external stakeholders in green supply chain management

The increasing importance of environmental issues requires efforts in different area of research and application. Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) offers great potentials for the improvement of ecological performance of manufacturers. The purpose of this paper is to explore the stakeholders’ pressures on green supply chains, and to develop a taxonomy framework that can be used for green supply chain decision makers based on the characteristic dimensions for the green supply chain. The taxonomic framework is developed through (i) analysis of different dimension of green supply chain found in existing empirical work or case studies recorded in the literature, (ii) identification of key stakeholders’ pressures that influence green supply chain management initiative

The incidence of permanent congenital hypothyroidism: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: One of the most prevalent endocrine disorders is congenital hypothyroidism (CH). The most important complication of this disorder is mental retardation. This study was carried out to evaluate CH prevalence based on newborn screening of CH in different countries through a meta-analysis study.METHODS: The researchers in this study searched the literature among PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Google Scholar, ISI Web of Sciences and Web of Knowledge, and Science Direct databases. The evaluations were carried out using a researcher-made checklist including goals and research questions. Meta-regression with the Mantel-Haenszel method was performed using a random effects model and Egger’s test (ET) and Begg’s test (BT) by the STATA software.RESULTS: A total of 10875 studies were found in the initial literature search related to CH. Ultimately, based on the eligibility criteria considered in the present study, 25 studies were categorized as qualified for systematic review and meta-analysis. The estimate of the CH prevalence among the screened neonates in the studies based on the random effects model was 4.85 per 10000 [95% confidence interval (CI): 4.04- 5.66].CONCLUSION: Due to the importance of CH related diseases especially for detection of type of hypothyroidism, it is necessary more surveillance be carried out in all countries. Based on Different studies, recognition of the most CH patients is before age 1 year so it helps to reduction the risks of developmental delay, and delayed physiological development and mental retardation

Effectiveness of a Community and School-Based Intervention to Control and Prevent of Tobacco Use in Adolescents: A Field Randomized Controlled Trial.

This article contains the authors' experience of a school and community-based intervention in Iran to prevent and reduce smoking in high school students. This has lessons for health school and community-based interventions. Adolescence is associated with several risky behaviors, such as increased use of tobacco (1). If the current trend continues, 250 million living children and adolescents who continue tobacco use into adulthood will die of health problems related to tobacco use (2). Given the global epidemiologic transition from poverty diseases to non-communicable diseases, the burden of disease and health risks among adolescents and young adults has changed significantly due to the undeniable role of substance use (3), including Iran (4). Therefore, a need for prevention and control programs of tobacco among adolescents and different implementation methods cannot be understated. Tobacco use prevention programs administered in schools are effective in reducing future smokers (5), although the interpretation of evidence for school-based prevention programs are affected by methodological issues. We conducted a field randomized controlled trial in East Azerbaijan, Iran, during the 2014–15 school year. Study subjects (n=4422) included high school students (intervention group=1965, control group=2457). Data were collected through self-reporting questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS ver. 23 (Chicago, IL, USA). The six-month intervention program consisted of training and environmental adaptations in cooperation with appropriate authorities. Training included teaching school staff about the health risks associated with tobacco use in adolescents and the health benefits of quitting. Physical education teachers were selected to train students about the health risks of tobacco use and how to resolve to say no to it and in 10 training sessions. In addition, students were asked to introduce their reliable peers as leader (15% of each school population) to contribute to the intervention program. The students participated in a one-hour orientation program, with question and answer time and two training videos shown in two sessions. These trained students (“peer leaders”) were requested to share their information and knowledge about tobacco use and challenge its use during the recess times. A campaign was also formed in the mosques and health centers to disseminate the message for communal effort to prevent and control tobacco access to the adolescents using leaflets and posters. Furthermore, measures were taken to ban tobacco use in public places, tobacco sale in proximity of schools, and sale to high school students. These measures were coordinated and implemented with assistance from school, trade, and police authorities. In the next step, the tobacco rehabilitation center phone number was publicized using placards in the town. The town committee on tobacco use met every two months and was updated on the progress of the program by different organizations and problems were addressed. There was no intervention in the control town (group). Once the intervention was completed, 1885 students in the intervention city and 2305 students in the control city responded to our questionnaire. The participants were high school student, 54.7% male and 45.3% female with a mean age of 15.81 (SD=1.15). The mean of cigarette start age was 12.4 (SD=3.42) and the mean for hookah smoking start age was 13.52 (SD=2.74). The proportions of students experimented with cigarette and hookah for at least one time were 10.7% and 19.7%, respectively. Age, gender, mother’s education, and locality were used as confounding variables and were controlled. The intervention led to an increased awareness of the side effects of tobacco (mean difference=0.36, CI.95= (0.12, 0.54)), prevention of negative changes in attitude towards tobacco (mean difference=1.59, CI.95= (−2.26, − 0.92)), and prevention of behavioral intention to tobacco use (mean difference = 0.43, CI = (0.06, 0.81), P<0.001). Post-intervention follow-up showed that initiating cigarette use after six months increased non-significantly in both groups but the changes within group were significant and higher in the control group. Hookah use increased significantly after six months in the control group and differed significantly from the baseline (P<0.02) and from the intervention group (P<0.001). Cigarette use increased in both groups in the past six months and 30 d but the increase in the past 30 d was higher in the intervention group (P<0.001). Quitting cigarette increased in the intervention group but decreased in the control group with a significant difference (P<0.001). In the past six months, the start of tobacco use, especially the hookah was significant in the control group, implying the need for urgent attention to smoking trend among the youth. Our results showed that intervention programs are effective in preventing tobacco use in nonsmokers than those who already smoke. Involving teachers in policies, and encouraging participation and cooperation among different authorities of community contribute to the control and prevention of tobacco use

Effectiveness of a Community and School-Based Intervention to Control and Prevent of Tobacco Use in Adolescents: A Field Randomized Controlled Trial

n

Modeling and forecasting of international tourism demand in ASEAN countries

This study attempts to find the best model to forecast international tourism demand using a series of key macroeconomic variables in ASEAN countries. Generally, we find that generalized Poisson regression model is the best one for estimating long-run international tourism demand. In addition, we find that inflation and real exchange rate have negative relationship with international tourism demand. On the other hand, foreign direct investment and openness of trade have positive relationship with international tourism demand. Cointegration test result shows that there is a long-run relationship between variables