Clinical laboratory as an economic model for business performance analysis

Aim To perform SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis of a clinical laboratory as an economic model that may be used to improve business performance of laboratories by removing weaknesses, minimizing threats, and using external opportunities and internal strengths. Methods Impact of possible threats to and weaknesses of the Clinical Laboratory at Našice General County Hospital business performance and use of strengths and opportunities to improve operating profit were simulated using models created on the basis of SWOT analysis results. The operating profit as a measure of profitability of the clinical laboratory was defined as total revenue minus total expenses and presented using a profit and loss account. Changes in the input parameters in the profit and loss account for 2008 were determined using opportunities and potential threats, and economic sensitivity analysis was made by using changes in the key parameters. The profit and loss account and economic sensitivity analysis were tools for quantifying the impact of changes in the revenues and expenses on the business operations of clinical laboratory. Results Results of simulation models showed that operational profit of €470 723 in 2008 could be reduced to only €21 542 if all possible threats became a reality and current weaknesses remained the same. Also, operational gain could be increased to €535 804 if laboratory strengths and opportunities were utilized. If both the opportunities and threats became a reality, the operational profit would decrease by €384 465. Conclusion The operational profit of the clinical laboratory could be significantly reduced if all threats became a reality and the current weaknesses remained the same. The operational profit could be increased by utilizing strengths and opportunities as much as possible. This type of modeling may be used to monitor business operations of any clinical laboratory and improve its financial situation by implementing changes in the next fiscal period

Der Werdegang und wissenschaftliche Erfolg von Nachwuchsforschern in Kroatien

We analyzed data on the junior researchers, using a sample of junior researchers whose fellowship supports from the Croatian Ministry of Science, Education and Sports were terminated between 1999 and 2005. Completing a PhD degree was positively associated with female gender, co-authoring a scientific article with the mentor, and above-average scientific production of the junior researcher. Junior researchers who were among top 10% of students according to their grade point average during undergraduate studies had significantly lower odds of completing a PhD degree during fellowship, as well as junior researchers who were employed in biomedicine. The study results indicate the potential points which could be influenced during the junior researchers selection process and at the moment of granting fellowships, both with an aim to improve the effectiveness of the junior researcher fellowship support system in the Republic of Croatia.Analizirali smo podatke o sustavu znanstvenih novaka na uzorku onih koji su izašli iz sustava potpore Ministarstva znanosti, obrazovanja i športa Republike Hrvatske tijekom razdoblja 1999.-2005. godine. Postizanje stupnja doktora znanosti bilo je pozitivno povezano sa ženskim spolom novaka, objavljivanjem znanstvenih radova s mentorom kao koautorom i iznadprosječnom znanstvenom produkcijom novaka. Znanstveni novaci koji su bili među 10% najboljih studenata prema prosjeku ocjena diplomskog studija imali su statistički značajno manju vjerojatnost da će doktorirati u odnosu na ostale novake, kao i znanstveni novaci zaposleni u biomedicini. Rezultati ovoga istraživanja upućuju na potencijalne točke na koje se može djelovati u trenutku odabira kandidata i odobravanja zahtjeva za novačka radna mjesta, oboje s ciljem poboljšanja djelotvornosti sustava znanstvenih novaka u Republici Hrvatskoj.Im vorliegenden Artikel werden Daten über die im kroatischen Hochschulwesen wirkenden Nachwuchsforscher analysiert, und zwar anhand solcher, die im Zeitraum von 1999 bis 2005 im Rahmen eines vom kroatischen Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Bildung und Sport geförderten Doktoratsstudiums an ihrer Promotion arbeiteten. Die Zahl der promovierten Frauen überwog vor dem Anteil der Männer; ein positiver Bezug zur Erlangung der Doktorwürde zeigte sich fernerhin bei der Veröffentlichung wissenschaftlicher Arbeiten in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Doktorvater als Koautor sowie im Falle einer überdurchschnittlichen wissenschaftlichen Leistung. Jungforscher, die gemäß den Leistungen ihrer Diplom- Studiengänge in das obere Zehntel der Studierenden fielen, zeigten im Verhältnis zu den übrigen Jungwissenschaftlern eine statistisch wesentlich geringere Wahrscheinlichkeit der Promotion, ebenso Jungforscher, die eine reguläre Anstellung im Bereich der Biomedizin hatten. Die Ergebnisse der vorliegenden Untersuchung verweisen auf mögliche Punkte, an denen bei der Auswahl und Anstellung von Dokotratskandidaten bewusst eingewirkt werden kann, um das System der Nachwuchsforschung in der Republik Kroatien zu verbessern

Forensic Determination of Dental Age of Adults

Svrha rada: Određivanje dentalne dobi kod odraslih ljudskih ostataka vrlo je važno u identifikaciji forenzičnih slučajeva, a provodi se i u paleostomatološkim analizama. Svrha studije bila je usporediti kronološku dob s dentalnom dobi postignutom metodom prema Johansonu (1971.). Materijal i načini: Ukupno se u studiji koristilo 140 trajnih zdravih zuba pripadnika bijele rase. Svi su bili bez dentalnih ispuna i karijesnih lezija. Kronološka dob ispitanika bila je između 18 i 80 godina, a srednja vrijednost iznosila je 45 godina. Za određivanje dentalne dobi koristio se postupak prema Johansonu iz godine 1971. Svaki je zub bio podvrgnut uzdužnoj sekciji do središta pulpnog prostora u vestibulo-lingvalnom smjeru. Na svakom je rezu promatrano šest parametara: količina sekundarnog dentina, atricija, nakupljenost zubnog cementa, resorpcija korijena, recesija parodontnog pričvrstka i translucencija korijenskog dentina. Postignuti rezultati dentalne dobi uspoređeni su s kronološkom, koristeći se Pearsonovim koeficijentom korelacije te regresijskom analizom. Rezultati: Dobiveni rezultati pokazali su veliku korelaciju između kronološke i određene dentalne dobi s koeficijentom korelacije koji je iznosio r=0,85, p<0,001. Korelacija među spolovima također je bila vrlo velika - r=0,99 za zube muških ispitanika i r=98 za zube ženskih ispitanika. Zaključak: Metoda korištena u ovom istraživanju pokazala se kao metoda izbora za određivanje dentalne dobi na ekshumiranim truplima i ljudskim ostacima u forenzičnim analizama u Hrvatskoj.Objectives: Estimaiting the dental age of the adult human remains can often be of great importance in forensic identifi cation cases, and also provides valuable data in paleodontology. The aim of the present study was to compare chronological age with estimated dental age by the method according to Johanson, published in 1971. Material and Methods: 140 permanent intact teeth without dental fi llings and/or dental cavity were taken. The known age was ranging from 18 to 80 years. The average age was 45 years. For the dental age estimation the method according to Johanson was used. Every tooth was subject to longitudinal section of the midpulpal area in a vestibulo-lingual plane. Six variables were analyzed: secondary dentin, attrition, cementum apposition, root resorption, periodontal recession, and root translucency. The results of the chronological and the estimated age have been statistically compared using Person’s correlation coeffi cient and regression analysis. Results: The results showed strong correlation coeffi cient r=0.85; p<0.001 between chronological and determinated dental age. Age determination on samples of teeth between genders is in signifi cant correlation with known age. Correlation coeffi cient was 0.99 for male, and 0.98 for female samples (p<0.001) Conclusion: The method used in this research is the method of choice for dental age determination on exhumed bodies and skeletal remains for forensic and anthropological analysis in Croatia

Dental Evidence of Exhumed Human Remains From the 1991 War in Croatia

The aim of this paper is to present the post mortem dental evidence and dental health of the victims exhumed throughout the territories of Croatia that was temporarily occupied during the war. A total number of 62,432 teeth out of 1,253 human bodies exhumed from 5 different counties were analyzed. The majority of victims inhabited those areas before 1991. Post mortem dental characteristics were analyzed according to the American Board of Forensic Odontology and WHO methodology. The results show the highest level of the dental health before 1991 in the Vukovarsko-Srijemska County. The decayed (D), missing (M), filling (F), teeth (T), DMFT of that County was at the lowest level i.e. at 5.2. In all of the other counties, it was always between 6 and 12. The material most frequently used for the dental fillings was amalgam. Its highest frequency level was recorded in the County 4 (8%) and lowest in the County 1 (1.5%), p<0.001. The most frequent prosthodontic appliances were acrylic dentures. Their frequency was lowest in the County 5 (1.3%) and highest in the County 3 (11.6%), p<0.001. Determination of sex and dental age showed that victims were mostly men (79%) of middle and elderly age (89%). Teeth were useful also for monitoring of the quality of exhumations – taking into consideration number of empty dental sockets. The highest number of empty dental sockets was recorded in the County 3 (40.4%) and lowest in the County 1 (13.5%), p<0.001. Even after many years in the soil, teeth proved to be the most preserved human organs and valuable indicators of identity as well as of the way of life before death

Forensic Determination of Dental Age of Adults

Svrha rada: Određivanje dentalne dobi kod odraslih ljudskih ostataka vrlo je važno u identifikaciji forenzičnih slučajeva, a provodi se i u paleostomatološkim analizama. Svrha studije bila je usporediti kronološku dob s dentalnom dobi postignutom metodom prema Johansonu (1971.). Materijal i načini: Ukupno se u studiji koristilo 140 trajnih zdravih zuba pripadnika bijele rase. Svi su bili bez dentalnih ispuna i karijesnih lezija. Kronološka dob ispitanika bila je između 18 i 80 godina, a srednja vrijednost iznosila je 45 godina. Za određivanje dentalne dobi koristio se postupak prema Johansonu iz godine 1971. Svaki je zub bio podvrgnut uzdužnoj sekciji do središta pulpnog prostora u vestibulo-lingvalnom smjeru. Na svakom je rezu promatrano šest parametara: količina sekundarnog dentina, atricija, nakupljenost zubnog cementa, resorpcija korijena, recesija parodontnog pričvrstka i translucencija korijenskog dentina. Postignuti rezultati dentalne dobi uspoređeni su s kronološkom, koristeći se Pearsonovim koeficijentom korelacije te regresijskom analizom. Rezultati: Dobiveni rezultati pokazali su veliku korelaciju između kronološke i određene dentalne dobi s koeficijentom korelacije koji je iznosio r=0,85, p<0,001. Korelacija među spolovima također je bila vrlo velika - r=0,99 za zube muških ispitanika i r=98 za zube ženskih ispitanika. Zaključak: Metoda korištena u ovom istraživanju pokazala se kao metoda izbora za određivanje dentalne dobi na ekshumiranim truplima i ljudskim ostacima u forenzičnim analizama u Hrvatskoj.Objectives: Estimaiting the dental age of the adult human remains can often be of great importance in forensic identifi cation cases, and also provides valuable data in paleodontology. The aim of the present study was to compare chronological age with estimated dental age by the method according to Johanson, published in 1971. Material and Methods: 140 permanent intact teeth without dental fi llings and/or dental cavity were taken. The known age was ranging from 18 to 80 years. The average age was 45 years. For the dental age estimation the method according to Johanson was used. Every tooth was subject to longitudinal section of the midpulpal area in a vestibulo-lingual plane. Six variables were analyzed: secondary dentin, attrition, cementum apposition, root resorption, periodontal recession, and root translucency. The results of the chronological and the estimated age have been statistically compared using Person’s correlation coeffi cient and regression analysis. Results: The results showed strong correlation coeffi cient r=0.85; p<0.001 between chronological and determinated dental age. Age determination on samples of teeth between genders is in signifi cant correlation with known age. Correlation coeffi cient was 0.99 for male, and 0.98 for female samples (p<0.001) Conclusion: The method used in this research is the method of choice for dental age determination on exhumed bodies and skeletal remains for forensic and anthropological analysis in Croatia

Business analytics of specialized medical biochemistry laboratory using profit and loss acount

Mjerenjem trenutačne učinkovitosti tržišnog poslovanja specijalističkoga medicinsko-biokemijskog laboratorija iskazuje se računovodstvena mjera profitabilnosti laboratorija, pri čemu profitabilan laboratorij troškove pružanja usluga pokriva prihodom od prodanih usluga. Račun dobiti i gubitka temeljni je financijski izvještaj poslovanja koji pokazuje ostvaruje li neki poslovni subjekt dobit u promatranome poslovnom razdoblju. Metode. Profitabilnost Specijalističkoga medicinsko-biokemijskog laboratorija Opće županijske bolnice Našice iskazana je izračunom dobiti i gubitka za 2007. godinu, a uspješnost poslovanja iskazana računovodstvenim mjerama marginalne kontribucije, bruto dobitka i operativne dobiti, kojima se jasno može iskazati posluje li laboratorij sa zaradom (pozitivan predznak mjera) ili ne. Primjena navedenog postupka omogućuje jednostavno uočavanje pokazatelja koji uzrokuju uspješno ili neuspješno poslovanje laboratorija. Rezultati. Izračun je pokazao operativnu dobit Laboratorija od 719.926 kn odnosno operativnu maržu od 11,7%, čime se dokazalo da Laboratorij posluje pozitivno te da mu nakon oduzimanja svih operativnih troškova poslovanja na 100 jedinica prihoda ostaje 11,7 jedinica dobiti iz njegove osnovne djelatnosti. Zaključak. Specijalistički medicinsko-biokemijski laboratorij Opće županijske bolnice Našice ostvario je svojim radom dobit, tj. zaradu. Cilj izračunavanja dobiti ili gubitka jest određivanje mogućih aktivnosti unutar laboratorija kojima se može djelovati na učinkovitost poslovanja, koja bi se iskazala povećanjem postojeće profitabilnosti. Ako se rad laboratorija iskaže negativnim poslovanjem, a ne učini se nikakva promjena kojom bi se poslovanje učinilo pozitivnim, ovakva analiza poslovanja daje jasnu informaciju o cijeni koju društvo u cjelini mora snositi radi nadoknađivanja negativnog poslovanja promatranog laboratorija koji je u okviru postojećeg sustava zdravstvene zaštite.Introduction. By measuring the actual effectiveness of a medical biochemistry laboratory’s business operations, we can determine the accounting measure of laboratory’s profitability, where operating expenses of the laboratory are covered by the income generated from the services. A laboratory’s financial report can be based on a profit and loss account, which shows whether or not a business entity, i.e., the laboratory, is making a profit during a particular business period. Methods. Profitability of the Specialized Medical Biochemical Laboratory (Laboratory) of the General County Hospital in Našice, Croatia, was determined using the profit and loss account for 2007. Business success was expressed using the accounting measures of marginal contribution, gross income, and operating income, which could show whether or not the laboratory was operating profitably. This procedure allowed us to identify indicators of successful or unsuccessful business operations of the Laboratory. Results. According to the profit and loss account, the operating profit was 719,926 HRK, i.e., the operating margin was 11.7%, indicating that the Laboratory was operating positively. After subtracting all operating expenses per 100 income units, 11.7 units profit remained from the Laboratory’s core business. Conclusion. The Specialized Medical Biochemical Laboratory of the General County Hospital in Našice generated income, i.e., it operated at a profit. The purpose of profit and loss account was to determine the Laboratory operations that had impact on its business effectiveness and could increase the actual profitability. If the laboratory operates at a loss, and no activities are undertaken that would reverse the business toward positive, the analysis may provide information on the cost for the society as a whole of the studied laboratory within the existing healthcare system

The Chronology of Third Molar Eruption in the Croatian Population

Dental age estimation is common in orthodontics, paedodontics, paleodontology and forensic dentistry. The aim of this study was to assess chronological course of eruptive developmental phases of third molar and to establish parameters for the Croatian population. Sample of this study consisted of 1249 orthopantomograms of 530 (42.4%) male and 719 (57.6%) female subjects, aged 10 to 25 years. Eruptive phases were classified in 4 stages. No significant sex difference was found. Established chronology of the third molar eruption can be used as a standard for the assessment of dental age in clinical and forensic research on samples of Croatian population

Plagiarism as a violation of scientific and academic integrity

Plagiranje je neovlašteno preuzimanje tuđih ideja, postupaka ili teksta bez odgovarajuće naznake s nakanom da se prikažu kao vlastita. Preuzimanje već objavljenih vlastitih ideja ili preuzimanje vlastitog već objavljenog teksta prikazujući ga novim i originalnim naziva se samoplagiranjem i smatra se jednako lošim kao i plagiranje. Učestalost plagiranja je u porastu, razvoj informacijsko-komunikacijske tehnologije olakšava neovlašteno preuzimanje teksta, no istovremeno, zahvaljujući istoj tehnologiji, razvijaju se računalni programi i mrežne usluge za otkrivanje plagiranja. Za provjeru tekstova i činjenice jesu li oni plagirani postoje različita programska rješenja. Većina se zasniva na konkordanciji, tj. usporedbi teksta pri čemu program iznalazi i označava podudarne dijelove teksta i izračunava njegov udio s obzirom na cijeli tekst. Neki od programa, osim što uspoređuju tekstove, pretražuju internet radi iznalaženja tekstova s podudarnim sadržajem. Svi programi mogu uspoređivati tekstove napisane na istom jeziku; međujezično pretraživanje nije moguće uz pomoć programske potpore. Primjeri programa su računalni programi (WCopyfi nd) i mrežne usluge (eTBlast, CrossCheck). Prednost mrežne usluge je mogućnost pronalaženja mogućeg teksta izvornika. eTBlast je besplatna mrežna usluga za pronalaženje podudarnih i vrlo sličnih sažetaka znanstvenih radova (pretražuje i bazu podataka Medline) koja je poslužila kao temelj za izradbu baze podataka Déjà vu. Mrežna usluga CrossCheck dostupna je samo članovima (akademske ustanove i časopisi), a korištenjem računalnog algoritma za pronalaženje sličnosti Then cate tvrtke iParadigms (Oakland, CA, SAD) provjerava podudarnost teksta ispitivanog članka s cijelovitim tekstovima sadržanim u bazi podataka CrossCheck ustrojenom suradnjom uredništva i izdavača znanstvenih časopisa koji objavljene članke pridružuju bazi podataka, što omogućuje nesmetano pretraživanje sadržaja zaštićenog pretplatom. Vrlo je važno prepoznati plagiranje i podučavati o njemu u akademskoj zajednici na svim nivoima obrazovanja. Urednici znanstvenih časopisa i znanstvenici trebaju se zajedno boriti protiv neetičnih istraživanja koja su suprotna znanstvenoj ideji i štetna za znanstvenu i opću zajednicu, kritički čitati i provjeravati znanstvenu publicistiku, prijavljivati plagiranje i ostale sumnjive postupke u istraživanjima uredništvima časopisa i nadležnim tijelima.Plagiarism is unauthorized appropriation of other people’s ideas, processes or text without giving correct credit and with intention to present it as own property. Appropriation of own published ideas or text and passing it as original is denominated self-plagiarism and considered as bad as plagiarism. The frequency of plagiarism is increasing and development of information and communication technologies facilitates it, but simultaneously, thanks to the same technology, plagiarism detection software is developing. There are diff erent software solutions for checking plagiarism. Most of them are based on concordance, i.e., comparison of text where program tools isolate and mark correspondent parts of the text and calculate its rate regarding the whole text. Several programs, besides comparing the texts, also search the Internet aiming for text with corresponding content. All programs can compare text written in the same language but translingual comparison with plagiarism detection software is not yet possible. The software is available through computer programs (WCopyfi nd) or Web Services (eTBlast, CrossCheck). Their advantage is in the possibility of fi nding the original source paper. eTBlast is the free of charge web based service for searching corresponding and highly similar scientific paper abstracts (it searches also Medline database), which served as the ground for constructing Déjà vu database. Web based service CrossCheck is accessible only for members (academic institutions and journals) and by using computer similarity algorithm iThen cate of company iParadigms (Oakland, CA, USA), it checks accordance of the given text with the complete texts in the CrossCheck database. It is organized by collaboration of journal editorial boards and publishers who pass the published papers to the base and enable searching of content usually protected by subscription. The importance of recognizing and teaching plagiarism in the academic community at all levels of education is enormous. Scientific journal editors and scientists should fight together against unethical researches which are opposite to the scientific idea and harmful for scientific community and society, critically read and examine scientific publications, report plagiarism and other suspicious research misconduct to journal editorial boards and institutional authorities

What we need to know when calculating the coefficient of correlation?

Korelacija je statistički postupak za izračunavanje povezanosti dviju varijabli. Vrijednost korelacije brojčano se iskazuje koeficijentom korelacije, najčešće Pearsonovim ili Spearmanovim, dok se značajnost koeficijenta iskazuje vrijednošću P. Koeficijent korelacije pokazuje u kojoj su mjeri promjene vrijednosti jedne varijable povezane s promjenama vrijednosti druge varijable. Predznak koeficijenta korelacije (+ ili -) govori nam o smjeru povezanosti. Prilikom izračunavanja korelacije najčešće se pogrješke odnose na uvjete za izračunavanje korelacije, tumačenje koeficijenta i značajnost korelacije, visoke koeficijente korelacije, pretpostavljanje uzročno-posljedične veze, jačinu povezanosti (koeficijent determinacije), te usporedbu dva koeficijenta korelacije.Correlation is a statistical procedure applied to calculate association between two variables. The value of correlation is numerically shown by a coefficient of correlation, most often by Pearson\u27s or Spearman\u27s coefficient, while the significance of the coefficient is expressed by P value. The coefficient of correlation shows the extent to which changes in the value of one variable are correlated to changes in the value of the other. A sign preceding the coefficient of correlation (+ or -) indicates the direction of correlation. The most frequent errors in calculating correlation are related to conditions for calculation, interpretation of the coefficient and correlation significance, high correlation coefficients, assumption of causal relationship, the strength of correlation (coefficient of determination), and comparison of two correlation coefficients