Design thinking for entrepreneurship: An explorative inquiry into its practical contributions

Design thinking (DT) is expanding its horizons across a variety of different domains. One of the early and debated contributions regarding DT addressed its relationship with the entrepreneurial field. Today, there are numerous contributions that design thinking can offer in the creation of new ventures. However, there are few examples in the literature that discuss the concrete impacts and benefits of adopting DT in this field, demonstrating it through entrepreneurial projects. This paper aims to explore practitioners’ experiences with the application of theories from design thinking inside an entrepreneurial context. The impacts of the learning and the relative application of the main design thinking principles are evaluated via a sample of 50 participants in an international summer academy that offered education on DT concepts and practices. Through this research, a deep understanding of how design thinking can contribute to entrepreneurship is provided, highlighting which specific DT abilities enable the development of entrepreneurial activity

Impact of artificial intelligence on radiology: a EuroAIM survey among members of the European Society of Radiology

We report the results of a survey conducted among ESR members in November and December 2018, asking for expectations about artificial intelligence (AI) in 5-10 years. Of 24,000 ESR members contacted, 675 (2.8%) completed the survey, 454 males (67%), 555 (82%) working at academic/public hospitals. AI impact was mostly expected (>= 30% of responders) on breast, oncologic, thoracic, and neuro imaging, mainly involving mammography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance. Responders foresee AI impact on: job opportunities (375/675, 56%), 218/375 (58%) expecting increase, 157/375 (42%) reduction; reporting workload (504/675, 75%), 256/504 (51%) expecting reduction, 248/504 (49%) increase; radiologist's profile, becoming more clinical (364/675, 54%) and more subspecialised (283/675, 42%). For 374/675 responders (55%) AI-only reports would be not accepted by patients, for 79/675 (12%) accepted, for 222/675 (33%) it is too early to answer. For 275/675 responders (41%) AI will make the radiologist-patient relation more interactive, for 140/675 (21%) more impersonal, for 259/675 (38%) unchanged. If AI allows time saving, radiologists should interact more with clinicians (437/675, 65%) and/or patients (322/675, 48%). For all responders, involvement in AI-projects is welcome, with different roles: supervision (434/675, 64%), task definition (359/675, 53%), image labelling (197/675, 29%). Of 675 responders, 321 (48%) do not currently use AI, 138 (20%) use AI, 205 (30%) are planning to do it. According to 277/675 responders (41%), radiologists will take responsibility for AI outcome, while 277/675 (41%) suggest shared responsibility with other professionals. To summarise, responders showed a general favourable attitude towards AI

Association of cerebral small vessel disease burden with brain structure and cognitive and vascular risk trajectories in mid-to-late life

We characterize the associations of total cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) burden with brain structure, trajectories of vascular risk factors, and cognitive functions in mid-to-late life. Participants were 623 community-dwelling adults from the Whitehall II Imaging Sub-study with multi-modal MRI (mean age 69.96, SD = 5.18, 79% men). We used linear mixed-effects models to investigate associations of SVD burden with up to 25-year retrospective trajectories of vascular risk and cognitive performance. General linear modelling was used to investigate concurrent associations with grey matter (GM) density and white matter (WM) microstructure, and whether these associations were modified by cognitive status (Montreal Cognitive Asessment [MoCA] scores of < 26 vs. ≥ 26). Severe SVD burden in older age was associated with higher mean arterial pressure throughout midlife (β = 3.36, 95% CI [0.42-6.30]), and faster cognitive decline in letter fluency (β = -0.07, 95% CI [-0.13--0.01]), and verbal reasoning (β = -0.05, 95% CI [-0.11--0.001]). Moreover, SVD burden was related to lower GM volumes in 9.7% of total GM, and widespread WM microstructural decline (FWE-corrected p < 0.05). The latter association was most pronounced in individuals who demonstrated cognitive impairments on MoCA (MoCA < 26; F3,608 = 2.14, p = 0.007). These findings highlight the importance of managing midlife vascular health to preserve brain structure and cognitive function in old age

White matter hyperintensities classified according to intensity and spatial location reveal specific associations with cognitive performance.

White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) on T2-weighted images are radiological signs of cerebral small vessel disease. As their total volume is variably associated with cognition, a new approach that integrates multiple radiological criteria is warranted. Location may matter, as periventricular WMHs have been shown to be associated with cognitive impairments. WMHs that appear as hypointense in T1-weighted images (T1w) may also indicate the most severe component of WMHs. We developed an automatic method that sub-classifies WMHs into four categories (periventricular/deep and T1w-hypointense/nonT1w-hypointense) using MRI data from 684 community-dwelling older adults from the Whitehall II study. To test if location and intensity information can impact cognition, we derived two general linear models using either overall or subdivided volumes. Results showed that periventricular T1w-hypointense WMHs were significantly associated with poorer performance in the trail making A (p = 0.011), digit symbol (p = 0.028) and digit coding (p = 0.009) tests. We found no association between total WMH volume and cognition. These findings suggest that sub-classifying WMHs according to both location and intensity in T1w reveals specific associations with cognitive performance

Platelet size for distinguishing between inherited thrombocytopenias and immune thrombocytopenia: a multicentric, real life study.

The most frequent forms of inherited thrombocytopenia (IT) are characterized by platelet size abnormalities and it has been suggested that this parameter is useful for their differentiation from immune thrombocytopenia (ITP). Recently, a monocentric study identified cut-off values for mean platelet volume (MPV) and mean platelet diameter (MPD) with good diagnostic accuracy in this respect. To validate these cut-off values in a different and larger case series of patients, we enrolled 130 subjects with ITP and 113 with IT in six different centres. The platelet count and MPV was each measured by the instrument routinely used in each institution. In some centres, platelet count was also measured by optical microscopy. MPD was evaluated centrally by image analysis of peripheral blood films. The previously identified cut-off value for MPV had 91% specificity in distinguishing ITP from inherited macrothrombocytopenias (mono and biallelic Bernard-Soulier, MYH9-related disease), while its sensitivity was greatly variable depending on the instrument used. With an appropriate instrument, specificity was 83%. The diagnostic accuracy of MPD was lower than that obtained with MPV. We concluded that MPV is a useful parameter for differentiating ITP from IT provided that it is measured by appropriate cell counters

Worldwide Effects of Coronavirus Disease Pandemic on Tuberculosis Services, January-April 2020

Coronavirus disease has disrupted tuberculosis services globally. Data from 33 centers in 16 countries on 5 continents showed that attendance at tuberculosis centers was lower during the first 4 months of the pandemic in 2020 than for the same period in 2019. Resources are needed to ensure tuberculosis care continuity during the pandemic

Worldwide Effects of Coronavirus Disease Pandemic on Tuberculosis Services, January–April 2020

Coronavirus disease has disrupted tuberculosis services globally. Data from 33 centers in 16 countries on 5 continents showed that attendance at tuberculosis centers was lower during the first 4 months of the pandemic in 2020 than for the same period in 2019. Resources are needed to ensure tuberculosis care continuity during the pandemic

Prototyping an employee experience model. A participatory action research project to support organizations in redefining the working routines starting from Employee Experience Design.

In the post-pandemic context, organizations are facing critical and systemic changes, particularly in people’s way of working and related processes. In the last decades, Design and Business Innovation literature presented the different ways Design supports organizations' innovation and transformation processes. This paper starts analyzing experimental approaches - namely design intervention - that Design may implement to support organizations in redefining working modes. The focal point of this contribution consists in the redefinition of working routines through the prototype of employee experience models. Furthermore, the existing literature presents a gap in the experimentation and implementation of prototyping activities in the employee experience design. Indeed, the application of service prototyping to employees' experience represents a stimulating challenge among design practitioners and researchers. In a moment of massive uncertainty in knowledge workers’ routines, how can Design be applied to Employee Experience to support organizations in redefining working scenarios? More specifically, how may we be able to co-design employee experience through a service prototyping approach? The theoretical purpose is to reflect on whether implementing service prototyping to employee experience may represent a fertile design research topic. The study presents a qualitative analysis with a Participatory Action Research method, partnering with an Italian bank's HR department and involved employees. Specifically, the paper is built on an experimental project that applies Employee Experience Design and Service Design Prototyping methods to redefine working habits in evolving contexts. Findings show the importance of employee experience prototyping in activating behavioral changes by triggering awareness-raising mechanisms in individuals. Additionally, the lengthy process of changing working practices and routines within organizations can be approached effectively by co-designing employee experience models and iteratively testing and evaluating them. The paper aims to show the potential benefits of exploration for design research in applying prototyping to employee experience design

How to use Strategic Design process to address complex challenges. A practical case of application to discuss Strategic Design process’ fundamental traits.

In recent years, new market rules have forced changes in how companies re-late to their customers. It is necessary to create new solutions precisely adapted to customers' needs. To do this, companies must expand their boundaries and adopt a transdisciplinary approach. In this panorama, the adoption of Strategic Design - meant as an approach to creating innovative product-service systems that characterize the company and its market posi-tioning - appears fundamental and decisive. This paper deals with a practi-cal case of application of the Strategic Design approach from a company op-erating in a non-traditional sector. The aim is to show the fundamental steps the company took in order to develop a new strategy thanks to the adoption of Strategic Design. As a result of adopting Strategic Design, the company created a new offer comprising a coherent and innovative product-system. This paper presents the positive implications emerged for the company from its adoption of Strategic Design