Die rekenmeestersprofessie en eksternaliteite - ’n oorsig

Since the first textbook on accounting was written approximately five centuries ago, the theory of accounting has changed and developed fundamentally. However, one field that has remained almost unchanged throughout the centuries is the accounting approach to externalities. The largescale interest in environmental issues has again placed the accounting approach to externalities under scrutiny. In this article an oven'iew is given of the development of the concept of externalities. The possible future influence of externalities on accounting and the accounting profession are also focused on

An approach to the patient with a post-nasal drip and rhinosinusitis

Post-nasal drip (PND) can be a bothersome symptom and one of the main reasons for patients visiting a general practitioner (GP), pulmonologist or ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeon. It can be either a symptom, sometimes not appreciated by the examining practitioner, or an important clinical sign suggesting rhinosinusitis. This article aims to explain the aetiological factors and initial work-up of the patient with a PND and rhinosinusitis and suggest a treatment paradigm for practitioners

The use of risk management principles in planning an internal audit engagement

With the current growth in awareness of the value of internal audit services, the increased demand from various stakeholders, and the scarcity of competent internal auditors, the profession needs a new mindset, particularly in respect of the execution of internal audit activities. Although risk-based internal auditing is a fairly new concept, its implementation could assist internal auditors to audit ‘smarter’, that is, more effectively and efficiently. However, it is unclear whether the current concept of a risk-based internal audit engagement is in line with modern business practices, such as enterprise-wide risk management principles. Furthermore, it is also uncertain whether internal auditors share a single set of risk management principles and concepts, and how (or even if) these should be included in the internal audit engagement. This article explores the common understanding of what the planning phase of a risk-based internal audit engagement should entail when based on risk management principles, and identifies the organisational elements that should be in place that would make it easier for internal auditors to implement such a risk-driven approach when conducting engagements. The research methodology involved a literature review and structured interviews with chief audit executives of risk-mature organisations. The findings support the existence of uncertainty among chief audit executives regarding the use of risk management principles when performing risk-based internal audit engagements. Chief audit executives also appeared uncertain how to apply these principles to the planning and execution of internal audit engagements. Gaps and shortcomings identified by the research should be addressed by the Institute of Internal Auditors through developing more comprehensive guidance for their members.Key words: risk management, key risks, internal auditing, risk-based internal auditing, internal audit engagemen

Trustworthiness of South African sustainability reports : an overview

Published ArticleIt is widely assumed that sustainability reporting is a mechanism that companies can use to demonstrate their trustworthiness with regard to development in a sustainable manner. This article uses the Mayer, Davis and Schoorman trust model as basis to discuss how sustainability reporting can enhance trustworthiness in a sustainable development context. The study also uses a survey-questionnaire, sent to South African sustainability reporters, to explore whether they are finding sustainability reporting useful for enhancing companies' trustworthiness among stakeholders in a sustainable development context. Respondents indicate, amongst other things, that sustainability reporting in South Africa has a role to play in enhancing trustworthiness, more so among contractual stakeholders than among community stakeholders. To entrench trust benefits in the long term will however require long term strategies. Such strategies should focus on increasing the engagement of community stakeholders, authentic use of the GRI and implementing effective control systems that prevent the misuse of sustainability reports, while not preventing the formation of real trust

Sosiale rekeningkunde: agtergrond en problematiek

The necessity for the accountant to report on the social responsibility of an enterprise, and in particular its responsibility towards the environment, has come into prominence lately. Nevertheless, there is probably no other field in accounting in which the accounting profession has failed to show process for so long. Since the time of the industrial Revolution social accounting has been regarded as essential, but especially during the late sixties and the seventies various authors have endeavoured to develop techniques and models for social accounting. Some of the most important problems encountered have however been the lack of acceptable uniform definitions, the fact that the accounting profession mostly reacts pragmatically and that as a result of pressure towards rapid development, fundamental questions have not been fully considered. The accounting profession should contribute to the development and application of social accounting and social audit as part of an interdisciplinary group of experts

Allergic fungal sinusitis secondary to Acremonium species causing unilateral visual loss

A wide range of fungi have been associated with Allergic Fungal Sinusitis (AFS) or Eosinophilic fungal rhinosinusitis ( EFRS) as it is known in some institutions. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of aggressive, invasive AFS due to Acremonium species occurring in an immunocompetent patient and leading to unilateral visual loss. Literature on AFS is reviewed.Key words: Eosinophilic fungal rhinosinusitis, Allergic fungal sinusitis, Acremonium species, visual loss

Professionele aanspreeklikheid van ouditeure teenoor derdes op grond van nalatigheid

People in the professional occupations such as auditors, lawyers, architects and engineers have a duty to treat their clients with solicitude. This duty arises from the nature of their calling and from the professional service that they offer their clients. This has led to the situation where members of the professions have increasingly been held responsible for damage suffered by third parties as a result of the neglect of their professionally inherent obligation of solicitude. Fraud scandals, such as those of Enron in the USA and Masterbond, PSC Guaranteed Growth and Tigon locally, have once again caused the focus to fall upon the professional responsibility of auditors.The question that is increasingly being asked is: when and under what circumstances will an auditor be held responsible towards a third party in his professional capacity for the negligent performance of his duties? For the purposes of this article, the focus will only be placed on the responsibility of the auditor on the grounds of his duty to report in terms of section 300 of the Companies Act. The distinctive rules and also the specific application of the general principles of delict in such cases are discussed in this article

The risk maturity of South African private and public sector organisations

Risk management is a fairly new concept for organisations world-wide, both in the private and the public sectors. With the evolution of corporate governance in general and specifically risk management, formalised risk management frameworks have been recognised by many as an effective tool in assisting management with their responsibilities. In South Africa, this is supported by the fact that risk management is included in the leading corporate governance codes and in legislation, such as the Public Finance Management Act, No 1 of 1999 and the King Report on Governance, 2009. However, the question remains as to how comprehensive an organisation’s risk management strategy should be. This article explores the concept of assessing risk maturity by using a risk maturity scorecard. After an existing risk maturity model was adjusted for the South African corporate governance environment, a scorecard was developed that was used to determine the risk maturity level of certain organisations within the South African private and public sectors. Results indicate that organisations within the private sector are mostly risk mature, while public sector organisations are lacking many elements within their risk management frameworks and no risk mature respondent could be found in this sector. Secondly, the article indicates that management’s commitment to risk management could be the one main concern that should be addressed to ensure an effective risk management strategy.http://www.saiga.co.za/publications-sajaar.htmam2013ff201

Endogenous orienting modulates the Simon effect: critical factors in experimental design

Responses are faster when the side of stimulus and response correspond than when they do not correspond, even if stimulus location is irrelevant to the task at hand: the correspondence, spatial compatibility effect, or Simon effect. Generally, it is assumed that an automatically generated spatial code is responsible for this effect, but the precise mechanism underlying the formation of this code is still under dispute. Two major alternatives have been proposed: the referential-coding account, which can be subdivided into a static version and an attention-centered version, and the attention-shift account. These accounts hold clear-cut predictions for attentional cuing experiments. The former would assume a Simon effect irrespective of attentional cuing in its static version, whereas the attention-centered version of the referential-coding account and the attention-shift account would predict a decreased Simon effect on validly as opposed to invalidly cued trials. However, results from previous studies are equivocal to the effects of attentional cuing on the Simon effect. We argue here that attentional cueing reliably modulates the Simon effect if some crucial experimental conditions, mostly relevant for optimizing attentional allocation, are met. Furthermore, we propose that the Simon effect may be better understood within the perspective of supra-modal spatial attention, thereby providing an explanation for observed discrepancies in the literature

Effect of Moringa oleifera Lam. leaf powder on the pharmacokinetics of nevirapine in HIV-infected adults: a one sequence cross-over study

Moringa oleifera Lam., an herb commonly consumed by HIV-infected people on antiretroviral therapy, inhibits cytochrome P450 3A4, 1A2 and 2D6 activity in vitro; and may alter the pharmacokinetics (PK) of antiretroviral drugs metabolized via the same pathways. However, in vitro drug interaction activity may not translate to a clinically significant effect. Therefore, the effect of moringa leaf powder on the PK of nevirapine in HIV-infected people was investigated. Adult patients at steady-state dosing with nevirapine were admitted for 12-h intensive PK sampling following a 21-day herbal medicine washout. Blood sampling was repeated after 14 days of nevirapine and moringa (1.85 g leaf powder/day) co-administration. Nevirapine plasma concentrations were determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. To assess the effect of moringa on nevirapine PK, the change in nevirapine area under the plasma concentration–time curve (AUC) was determined. The mean difference in pre- and post-moringa nevirapine, maximum concentration (Cmax) and concentration at 12 h (C12h) were also calculated. The PK parameters were compared by assessing the post/pre geometric mean ratios (GMRs) and associated 90% confidence intervals (CIs). Pharmacokinetics analyses were performed on the results from 11 participants for whom complete data were obtained. The post/pre GMRs and associated 90% CIs for nevirapine were 1.07 (1.00–1.14) for the AUC; 1.06 (0.98–1.16) for Cmax and 1.03 (0.92–1.16) for C12h. Co-administration of Moringa oleifera Lam. leaf powder at the traditional dose did not significantly alter the steady-state PK of nevirapine. Trial registration number NCT01410058 (ClinicalTrials.gov