Análise da sustentabilidade em uma empresa do setor elétrico

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro Sócio Econômico, Curso de Ciências Contábeis.A Conferência das Nações Unidas sobre o Meio Ambiente e o Desenvolvimento (CNUMAD), realizada no Rio de Janeiro em 1992, foi um evento marcante para as questões ambientais mundiais. A partir desse movimento, conceitos como "ambientalmente correto" e "desenvolvimento sustentável" passaram a fazer parte do cotidiano da sociedade, que começou a exigir das organizações posturas e práticas ambientalmente menos impactantes. Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo avaliar os aspectos e impactos ambientais das Centrais Elétricas de Santa Catarina S.A., com base no método SICOGEA - Geração 2, buscando identificar o grau de sustentabilidade. Os objetivos específicos consistem em verificar as medidas de gestão ambiental praticadas pela empresa, identificar os índices de sustentabilidade ambiental da empresa através do SICOGEA - Geração 2, especificamente a primeira fase da terceira etapa, identificar os aspectos com os menores resultados de sustentabilidade ambiental e propor um plano resumido de gestão ambiental que contemple os pontos críticos quanto à sustentabilidade. A metodologia utilizada foi a descritiva-exploratória com análise de dados qualitativa. A trajetória metodológica consistiu em uma fundamentação teórica, abordando assuntos pertinentes ao tema, seguida pelo estudo de caso, o qual se inicia com um breve histórico da instituição, seguido pela responsabilidade socioambiental. Após, aplicou-se a primeira fase da terceira etapa do SICOGEA - Geração 2, e foi identificado um desempenho de sustentabilidade geral da empresa no percentual de 74,21%, considerado "Bom". Na análise dos indicadores de eficiência, o grupo-chave que apresentou um melhor desempenho quanto ao índice de eficiência ajustado foi "Recursos Humanos", com 20,33%, enquanto que o grupo-chave "Produção", com 16,77% apresentou o menor desempenho. Dos sete subprocessos analisados o subgrupo "Gestão da Instituição" apresentou o melhor desempenho, com 12,52%, enquanto os piores índices encontrados foram "Processo de Produção", com 7,23%, e "Marketing - Responsabilidade Socioambiental", com 10,33%, identificados como prioridades no atendimento. No final conclui-se que a empresa tem investindo projetos de valorização ao meio ambiente que vão além do atendimento à legislação

Assessment of cardiovascular regulation through irreversibility analysis of heart period variability: a 24 hours Holter study in healthy and chronic heart failure populations

We propose an approach based on time reversibility analysis to characterize the cardiovascular regulation and its nonlinearities as derived from 24 hours Holter recordings of heart period variability in a healthy population (n=12, age: median=43 years, range=34–55 years) and in a pathological group of age-matched chronic heart failure (CHF) patients (n=13, primarily in NYHA class II, age: median=37 years, range=33–56 years, ejection fraction: median=25%, range=13–30%). Two indices capable of detecting nonlinear irreversible dynamics according to different strategies of phase-space reconstruction (i.e. a fixed two-dimensional phase-space reconstruction and an optimal selection of the embedding dimension, respectively) are tested and compared with a more traditional nonlinear index based on local nonlinear prediction. Results showed that nonlinear dynamics owing to time irreversibility at short time scales are significantly present during daytime in healthy subjects, more frequently present in the CHF population and less frequently during night-time in both groups, thus suggesting their link with a dominant sympathetic regulation and/or with a vagal withdrawal. On the contrary, nonlinear dynamics owing to time irreversibility at longer, dominant time scales were insignificantly present in both groups. During daytime in the healthy population, irreversibility was mostly due to the presence of asymmetric patterns characterized by bradycardic runs shorter than tachycardic ones. Nonlinear dynamics produced by mechanisms different from those inducing temporal irreversibility were significantly detectable in both groups and more frequently during night-time. The present study proposes a method to distinguish different types of nonlinearities and assess their contribution over different temporal scales. Results confirm the usefulness of this method even when applied in uncontrolled experimental conditions such as those during 24 hours Holter recordings

Intensive Rehabilitation Treatment in Parkinsonian Patients with Dyskinesias: A Preliminary Study with 6-Month Followup

A major adverse effect of levodopa therapy is the development of dyskinesia, which affects 30–40% of chronically treated Parkinsonian patients. We hypothesized that our rehabilitation protocol might allow a reduction in levodopa dosage without worsening motor performances, thus reducing frequency and severity of dyskinesias. Ten Parkinsonian patients underwent a 4-week intensive rehabilitation treatment (IRT). Patients were evaluated at baseline, at the end of the rehabilitation treatment and at 6-month followup. Outcome measures were the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Sections II, III, and IV (UPDRS II, III, IV) and the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS). At the end of the IRT, levodopa dosage was significantly reduced (P = 0.0035), passing from 1016 ± 327 to 777 ± 333 mg/day. All outcome variables improved significantly (P < 0.0005 all) by the end of IRT. At followup, all variables still maintained better values with respect to admission (P < 0.02 all). In particular AIMS score improved passing from 11.90 ± 6.5 at admission to 3.10 ± 2.3 at discharge and to 4.20 ± 2.7 at followup. Our results suggest that it is possible to act on dyskinesias in Parkinsonian patients with properly designed rehabilitation protocols. Intensive rehabilitation treatment, whose acute beneficial effects are maintained over time, might be considered a valid noninvasive therapeutic support for Parkinsonian patients suffering from diskinesia, allowing a reduction in drugs dosage and related adverse effects

Occupational Therapy for Parkinsonian Patients: A Retrospective Study

Background: Hand functionality and finger dexterity are impaired in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). These disturbances lead to a dependency in activities of daily living (ADL) and poor quality of life (QoL). Objective: We aimed to evaluate whether a specific occupational therapy (OT) program is effective in improving finger and hand dexterity and its impact on ADL in PD patients. Methods: We retrospectively studied PD patients, hospitalized for a 4-week multidisciplinary intensive rehabilitation treatment (MIRT) between January 2015 and June 2018. All patients underwent 1 h/day OT treatment, 5 days a week. The primary outcome measure was the O’Connor finger dexterity test; secondary outcome measures were the Minnesota dexterity test, UPDRS II, and Self-Assessment Parkinson’s Disease Disability Scale (SPDDS). These measures were assessed at admission (T0) and discharge (T1). Results: Based on the Hoehn and Yahr scale (H&Y), patients were divided into two groups: 262 subjects in H&Y stage <3 (early-stage PD patients) and 220 in H&Y stage ≥3 (medium-advanced stage PD patients). As expected, at baseline, all measures were worse in higher H&Y stages. After treatment, both groups experienced significant improvements in all outcomes. Significant differences between early-stage and medium-advanced stage PD patients were observed only for the changes in UPDRS II, with a better improvement in patients in H&Y stage ≥3. Conclusions: We showed that PD patients who underwent a rehabilitation protocol including OT experienced improvements in finger dexterity and hand functionality. Our results underline the relevance of OT in improving autonomy and QoL in PD patients

REDES SOCIAIS: UMA NOVA PERSPECTIVA PARA EDUCAÇÃO A DISTÂCIA

Muitas pessoas estão utilizando as redes sociais na internet para interagir por diversos motivos. Estão dispostas a conversar se apresentar, expressar suas atividades cotidianas, constituir amigos, procurar trabalho, lugares para viajar, comprar ou compartilhar coisas que são de seu interesse e comuns a muitas outras pessoas, muitas vezes também compartilham conhecimentos tácitos e científicos, pensamentos críticos ou espontaneamente se agrupam para alcançar maior influência em suas idéias e propósitos. As pessoas e seus eventos diários são apoiados pela Tecnologia de Comunicação e Informação (TICs). O objetivo deste texto é iniciar uma reflexão sobre o uso das redes sociais na educação a distância (EAD) e esclarecer alguns conceitos que podem ajudar nesta nova perspectiva, sugerindo mais uma ferramenta de comunicação e informação que pode ser utilizada para o apóio pedagógico na disseminação do conhecimento das instituições educacionais. Para atingir os objetivos do trabalho, foi utilizado o método indutivo, senda uma pesquisa qualitativa, descritiva e bibliográfica, além do empirismo dos autores sobre o assunto. É fundamental na sociedade este conhecimento devido às grandes e rápidas mudanças que o mundo globalizado nos impõe. Os envolvidos neste processo passam agora a aprender de forma diferenciada e a ter uma nova postura nas trocas de conhecimento

Effects of zoledronic acid and dexamethasone on early phases of socket healing after tooth extraction in rats : a preliminary macroscopic and microscopic quantitative study

The exact pathogenesis of medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) is still unknown. The aim of this paper was to investigate the effects of zoledronic acid and dexamethasone on the early phases of socket healing in rats subjected to tooth extractions. Thirty male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 2 groups: pharmacologically treated group (T, n=20) and non-pharmacologically treated group (C, n=10). T group rats received 0.1 mg/Kg of zoledronic acid (ZOL) and 1 mg/Kg of dexamethasone (DEX) three times a week for 10 consecutive weeks. C group rats were infused with vehicle. After 9 weeks from the first infusion, first maxillary molars were extracted in each of the rats. Quantitative macroscopic and microscopic analysis was performed to evaluate socket healing 8 days after extraction. Pharmacologically treated rats showed significant inhibition of bone remodeling. Connective tissue/alveolar bone ratio, osteoclast number and woven bone deposition were significantly reduced in group T compared to group C. Conversely, the proportion of necrotic bone was higher in group T compared to group C (0.8% and 0.3%, respectively. P=0.031). ZOL plus DEX do not cause gross effects on socket healing at a macroscopic level. Our findings confirmed that exposure to ZOL plus DEX impairs alveolar wound repair. Inhibition of osteoclastic resorption of socket walls after tooth extraction and the inability to dispose of the necrotic bone may be considered the initial steps of MRONJ onset

Milestones and Timescale of Poststroke Recovery: A Cohort Study

Progressive increase of an aging population in Western countries will result in a growth of stroke prevalence. As many stroke survivors chronically show severe disability, increase in economic, social, and medical burden could be expected in the future. Objective and subjective measures of poststroke recovery are necessary to obtain predictive information, to improve the treatments, and to better allocate resources