Management practices for retaining highly talented employees in a large South African organisation

The management practices used by predominantly large organisations for the purpose of retaining talented people is key to the greater success and longer term sustainability of the business. However, these organisations continue to wrestle with appropriate management practices to retain their talented people. It is therefore of critical importance that organisations are aware of the retention practices that work, and those that don’t, in the global war for retaining talent. A non-probability sampling method was used to select a sample of high potential or talented employees that either are, or have been participants of the Leadership Academy at a large South African organisation, to participate in a series of focus groups utilising the nominal group technique which enabled the quantification of qualitative data. A total of 36 highly talented employees participated in the focus groups which were split in terms of age in order to establish if different age groups had different views. The findings of the research enabled the development of a structured argument in terms of what organisations need to start doing, stop doing and continue doing with respect to the management practices employed for the retention of highly talented people. The research further enabled the identification of a number of components to an employee value proposition (EVP) geared specifically at the retention of highly talented people in a large organisation.Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010.Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)unrestricte

Impact on Patient Safety and Satisfaction of Implementation of an Outpatient Clinic in Interventional Radiology (IPSIPOLI-Study): A Quasi-Experimental Prospective Study

PURPOSE: Interventional radiology (IR) procedures are associated with high rates of preparation and planning errors. In many centers, pre-procedural consultation and screening of patients is performed by referring physicians. Interventional radiologists have better knowledge about procedure details and risks, but often only get acquainted with the patient in the procedure room. We hypothesized that patient safety (PS) and patient satisfaction (PSAT) in elective IR procedures would improve by implementation of a pre-procedural visit to an outpatient IR clinic. MATERIAL AND METHODS: IRB approval was obtained and informed consent was waived. PS and PSAT were measured in patients undergoing elective IR procedures before (control group; n = 110) and after (experimental group; n = 110) implementation of an outpatient IR clinic. PS was measured as the number of process deviations. PSAT was assessed using a questionnaire measuring Likert scores of three dimensions: interpersonal care aspects, information/communication, and patient participation. Differences in PS and PSAT between the two groups were compared using an independent t test. RESULTS: The average number of process deviations per patient was 0.39 in the control group compared to 0.06 in the experimental group (p < 0.001). In 9.1 % patients in the control group, no legal informed consent was obtained compared to 0 % in the experimental group. The mean overall Likert score was significantly higher in the experimental group compared to the control group: 2.68 (SD 0.314) versus 2.48 (SD 0.381) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: PS and PSAT improve significantly if patients receive consultation and screening in an IR outpatient clinic prior to elective IR procedures

A checklist to improve patient safety in interventional radiology

To develop a specific RADiological Patient Safety System (RADPASS) checklist for interventional radiology and to assess the effect of this checklist on health care processes of radiological interventions. On the basis of available literature and expert opinion, a prototype checklist was developed. The checklist was adapted on the basis of observation of daily practice in a tertiary referral centre and evaluation by users. To assess the effect of RADPASS, in a series of radiological interventions, all deviations from optimal care were registered before and after implementation of the checklist. In addition, the checklist and its use were evaluated by interviewing all users. The RADPASS checklist has two parts: A (Planning and Preparation) and B (Procedure). The latter part comprises checks just before starting a procedure (B1) and checks concerning the postprocedural care immediately after completion of the procedure (B2). Two cohorts of, respectively, 94 and 101 radiological interventions were observed; the mean percentage of deviations of the optimal process per intervention decreased from 24 % before implementation to 5 % after implementation (p < 0.001). Postponements and cancellations of interventions decreased from 10 % before implementation to 0 % after implementation. Most users agreed that the checklist was user-friendly and increased patient safety awareness and efficiency. The first validated patient safety checklist for interventional radiology was developed. The use of the RADPASS checklist reduced deviations from the optimal process by three quarters and was associated with less procedure postponement

Don't Miss Me: Midfoot Sprains, A Point-of-Care Review

Athletes practicing high-contact sports are exposed to an increased risk of midfoot injuries, namely midtarsal sprains. The complexity of reaching an accurate diagnosis is clearly depicted in the reported incidence of midtarsal sprains, ranging from 5% to 33% of ankle inversion injuries. Because the focus of the treating physician and physical therapist is on lateral stabilizing structures, midtarsal sprains are missed at initial evaluation in up to 41% of patients, with delayed treatment as a result.Detecting acute midtarsal sprains requires a high degree of clinical awareness. Radiologists must become familiar with the characteristic imaging findings of normal and pathologic midfoot anatomy to avoid adverse outcomes such as pain and instability. In this article we describe Chopart joint anatomy, mechanisms of midtarsal sprains, clinical importance, and key imaging findings with a focus on magnetic resonance imaging. A team effort is essential to provide optimal care for the injured athlete