Smart logistics : sustainable technological innovations in customer service at the last-mile stage : the Polish perspective

The present day is marked by the economic expansiveness of societies and the adoption and adaptation of intelligent technologies. In this hyper-world, customers expect a personalized offer enhanced with customized service, which results in the introduction of sustainable and intelligent solutions—among other services. What becomes important is not so much the "Primum non nocere" of creation as much as the "go smart to the future" in creating. The smart logistics concept is a representation of this trend. The subject of the article is an analysis of the impact of the application of the smart idea in the field of sustainable development on changes in logistics in customer service at the last-mile stage. The source of this article is exploratory research of secondary sources, including books, articles, and reports, which has been subjected to a critical content analysis. The obtained results made it possible to design and implement an explanatory study of online-buying habits of people based on the CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interview) methodology. The collected material has become the basis for the authors to indicate the applicability of smart logistics in the field of last-mile logistics, which can be used by researchers and training institutions in the field of professionalization of management of intelligent logistics processes in customer service at the last-mile stage. The last-mile service in logistics involves reaching the largest possible number of recipients, however, it has a negative impact on the natural environment, which, of course, contradicts the concept of sustainable development, including trends that are noticeable in the logistics market, customers, and in the law. Hence, it is important to look for solutions that allow us to achieve the appropriate level of customer service in the last mile, but at the same time, take care of the natural environment. The study was narrowed down to the Polish perspective due to the growing demand for last-mile logistics services. Moreover, Poland is still a country where the concept of sustainable development is not fully understood and used. The research allowed us to indicate the directions of development of the last-mile service processes by considering the technological innovations that may support the application of the concept of sustainable development

Beyond Figures and Numbers Participatory Budgeting as a Leverage for Citizen Identity and Attachment to Place

The purpose of the paper is to examine the potential of participatory budgeting (PB) for the formation of citizen identity and attachment to the place in terms of individual, territorial and thematic focus. In the theoretical discussion, the authors analyse the concepts of place attachment, social identity and their influence on civic participation. The authors propose a conceptual framework for the analysis of relationships between PB, place attachment, and social identity. In the case of the community development model of PB, place attachment should lead to the citizens’ increased inclination to participate. In the case of participatory democracy model of PB citizen participation can lead to a stronger place attachment. The conceptual framework presented in the paper requires empirical confirmation. Further research on the subject should revolve around the influence of place attachment on the formation of social identity and vice versa by application of the discussed models of PB. The placemakers should take into account literature-based evidence that advisory models of PB do not reinforce place identity. The places that apply one of the transition models should consider the evolution of their PB policies towards either community development model or participatory democracy model. By review of diverse theoretical approaches on place identity and local participation, the paper creates a solid foundation for further analysis of the relationships between the application of PB and the development of civic identity and place attachment

Last mile logistics innovations in the courier-express-parcel sector due to the COVID-19 pandemic

The development of the e-commerce market worldwide, which was already dynamic, was accelerated by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Millions of incoming orders required analogue support from the CEP sector (courier-express-parcels sector) to provide the desired "customer experience". In the context of whether the habit of shopping in virtual reality will become permanent, it is worth considering what shape the logistics services will take in the last mile after the pandemic? Or, will customers return to shopping in the real world? A subject for these considerations was an analysis of the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 virus pandemic on the technologization of last mile logistics services, resulting in an increase in the level of "customer experience", with Poland as an example. The research methods used were participant observations and critical analysis of collected materials. The obtained results made it possible to conduct a descriptive and explanatory nomothetic study based on an Internet questionnaire. The authors formulated a diagnosis about the possibilities of using the potential of customer experience for the development of enterprises based on technologization of last mile deliveries. The recommendations can be used by scientists and managers in the CEP industry to redefine business models based on the technology of logistics customer service processes

Inteligentne zarządzanie dziedzictwem kulturowym w procesie budowania marek miast

Cel: Celem artykułu jest analiza zmian w podejściu do zarządzania dziedzictwem kulturowym w procesie budowania marek miast przy zastosowaniu elementów koncepcji miasta inteligentnego. Ewolucja paradygmatu zarządzania dziedzictwem od ochrony, poprzez konserwację po planowanie wymaga od decydentów przyjęcia proaktywnej postawy wobec użytkowników miasta w procesach współdecydowania o definiowaniu i wykorzystywaniu lokalnego dziedzictwa. Wykorzystanie inteligentnych narzędzi w komunikowaniu się z użytkownikami, tworzeniu zasobów, czy dystrybucji dóbr kultury służy usprawnieniu procesów tworzenia marek miast opartych o kulturę. Metody: Wchodząc od paradygmatu planowania dziedzictwa, jako modelowego ujęcia nowoczesnej polityki kulturalnej, przeanalizowano dane wtórne dotyczące praktyk wybranych miast z zakresu zarządzania kulturą, które wpisują się w koncepcję smart city. Dokonano przeglądu dobrych praktyk w zakresie inteligentnego zarządzania dziedzictwem kulturowym pochodzących z miast zrzeszonych w sieci miast kreatywnych UNESCO, które z dziedzictwa kulturowego uczyniły idee przewodnią swoich marek. Na tym tle zaprezentowano dyskusję na temat aktualnych uwarunkowań budowania marki miasta, traktując dziedzictwo kulturowe jako jeden z jej najważniejszych komponentów. Wyniki: W opracowaniu zidentyfikowano metody i narzędzia bazujące na nowych technologiach, które są najbardziej użyteczne w obszarze zarządzania dziedzictwem kulturowym jako komponentem marki miasta. Wskazano na kluczowe znaczenie nowych technologii w brandingu miast w obszarze kultury, jako narzędzi, które pozwalają na najpełniejszą realizację idei partycypacji obywatelskiej i koprodukcji (integracja wymiarów smart living i smart people w polityce kulturalnej miast inteligentnych)

Down-phase auditory stimulation is not able to counteract pharmacologically or physiologically increased sleep depth in traumatic brain injury rats

Modulation of slow-wave activity, either via pharmacological sleep induction by administering sodium oxybate or sleep restriction followed by a strong dissipation of sleep pressure, has been associated with preserved posttraumatic cognition and reduced diffuse axonal injury in traumatic brain injury rats. Although these classical strategies provided promising preclinical results, they lacked the specificity and/or translatability needed to move forward into clinical applications. Therefore, we recently developed and implemented a rodent auditory stimulation method that is a scalable, less invasive and clinically meaningful approach to modulate slow-wave activity by targeting a particular phase of slow waves. Here, we assessed the feasibility of down-phase targeted auditory stimulation of slow waves and evaluated its comparative modulatory strength in relation to the previously employed slow-wave activity modulators in our rat model of traumatic brain injury. Our results indicate that, in spite of effectively reducing slow-wave activity in both healthy and traumatic brain injury rats via down-phase targeted stimulation, this method was not sufficiently strong to counteract the boost in slow-wave activity associated with classical modulators, nor to alter concomitant posttraumatic outcomes. Therefore, the usefulness and effectiveness of auditory stimulation as potential standalone therapeutic strategy in the context of traumatic brain injury warrants further exploration

Efficacy and safety of obinutuzumab-chlorambucil combination in the frontline treatment of elderly patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and comorbidities : real‑life data from Polish Adult Leukemia Group (PALG) analysis

Fludarabine- or bendamustine‑based upfront immunochemotherapy is the current standard of care in fit patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). These regimens are poorly tolerated by patients with comorbidities, for whom the obinutuzumab-chlorambucil combination became the recommended first‑line treatment. We aimed to analyze real‑life experience with the obinutuzumab-chlorambucil combination as the frontline treatment in elderly and unfit patients. The retrospective analysis included 86 elderly patients (median age, 74 years) with CLL and a significant burden of comorbidities, treated with obinutuzumab-chlorambucil as the frontline regimen. All patients had a Cumulative Illness Rating Scale score greater than 6 and/or creatinine clearance of 30 to 69 ml/min. Overall response rate at 2 months after treatment completion was 95.3%, with complete remission (CR) rate of 43% and partial remission (PR) rate of 52.3%. Stable disease rate was 4.7%. Progressive disease was not observed after treatment completion. The median progression‑free survival (PFS) was not reached after a median follow‑up of 18 months; estimated PFS at 30 months was 62%. We observed 6 relapses (7%), 3 (3.5%) in patients obtaining CR, and 3 (3.5%) in those with PR after immunochemotherapy. The most frequent adverse events were neutropenia and infusion‑related reactions (IRRs). Grade-3 neutropenia occurred in 11.6% of patients, and grade-3 IRRs, in 2.3%. There were no adverse events of grade 4 or 5. Our data confirm that the obinutuzumab-chlorambucil combination is an effective and well‑tolerated regimen in untreated CLL patients with comorbidities

Thalidomide, dexamethasone and lovastatin with autologous stem cell transplantation as a salvage immunomodulatory therapy in patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma

The treatment of patients with multiple myeloma usually includes many drugs including thalidomide, lenalidomide and bortezomib. Lovastatin and other inhibitors of HMG-CoA reductase demonstrated to exhibit antineoplasmatic and proapoptotic properties in numerous in vitro studies involving myeloma cell lines. We treated 91 patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma with thalidomide, dexamethasone and lovastatin (TDL group, 49 patients) or thalidomide and dexamethasone (TD group, 42 patients). A clinical response defined of at least 50% reduction of monoclonal band has been observed in 32% of TD patients and 44% of TDL patients. Prolongation of overall survival and progression-free survival in the TDL group as compared with the TD group has been documented. The TDL regimen was safe and well tolerated. The incidence of side effects was comparable in both groups. Plasma cells have been cultured in vitro with thalidomide and lovastatin to assess the impact of both drugs on the apoptosis rate of plasma cells. In vitro experiments revealed that the combination of thalidomide and lovastatin induced higher apoptosis rate than apoptosis induced by each drug alone. Our results suggest that the addition of lovastatin to the TD regimen may improve the response rate in patients with relapsed or refractory myeloma

Wyzwania wczesnej diagnostyki szpiczaka plazmocytowego – algorytm diagnostyczny

Inicjatywy wczesnej diagnostyki onkologicznej podejmowane w różnych krajach mają na celu skrócenie czasu pomiędzy pojawieniem się pierwszych objawów a rozpoznaniem nowotworu. Chorzy na szpiczaka plazmocytowego mają najdłuższy, spośród wszystkich pac- jentów z najczęściej występującymi nowotworami, czas oczekiwania od zgłoszenia pierwszych objawów do rozpoznania. W efekcie prowadzi to do rozpoznawania choroby w zaawansowanym stadium i większej liczby powikłań, w tym trwałych uszkodzeń narządowych i gorszej odpowiedzi na leczenie. Powodem opóźnień diagnostycznych jest niska swoistość objawów szpiczaka. W wielu przypadkach na chorobę zapadają osoby starsze, u których choroby współistniejące mogą utrudniać rozpoznanie. Ponadto, ważną rolę odgrywa- ją bariery wczesnej diagnostyki związane z pacjentami, lekarzami i systemem opieki zdrowotnej. Aktualnie brak jest danych dotyczą- cych czasu trwania procesu diagnostycznego w Polsce. Wobec znacznego zaawansowania choroby i licznych powikłań stwierdzanych w okresie rozpoznania szpiczaka u chorych w Polsce można założyć, że istnieje duża przestrzeń do skrócenia ścieżki diagnostycznej. Pierwszym etapem jest edukacja lekarzy na temat charakterystycznych i nietypowych dla szpiczaka objawów oraz wartości testów diagnostycznych. Aby przyspieszyć ścieżkę diagnostyczną i zracjonalizować nakłady diagnostyczne przez stopniowe wykorzystywanie kolejnych zasobów w coraz mniejszych grupach osób, u których podejrzewa się zachorowanie, stworzono kalkulator diagnostyczny. Algorytm oparty o profil objawów i wyniki testów diagnostycznych polskich pacjentów może okazać się skutecznym narzędziem ułat- wiającym lekarzom rodzinnym identyfikację i kierowanie chorych na konsultację hematologiczną. Poszerzenie panelu badań gwaran- towanych o immunofiksację, wykonywaną w wyselekcjonowanej w ramach algorytmu diagnostycznego grupie osób, byłoby istotnym uzupełnieniem możliwości stawiania wstępnego rozpoznania choroby na poziomie podstawowej opieki zdrowotnej

Thrombotic and bleeding complications in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and severe COVID-19: a study of ERIC, the European Research Initiative on CLL

BACKGROUND: Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) may be more susceptible to COVID-19 related poor outcomes, including thrombosis and death, due to the advanced age, the presence of comorbidities, and the disease and treatment-related immune deficiency. The aim of this study was to assess the risk of thrombosis and bleeding in patients with CLL affected by severe COVID-19. METHODS: This is a retrospective multicenter study conducted by ERIC, the European Research Initiative on CLL, including patients from 79 centers across 22 countries. Data collection was conducted between April and May 2021. The COVID-19 diagnosis was confirmed by the real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay for SARS-CoV-2 on nasal or pharyngeal swabs. Severe cases of COVID-19 were defined by hospitalization and the need of oxygen or admission into ICU. Development and type of thrombotic events, presence and severity of bleeding complications were reported during treatment for COVID-19. Bleeding events were classified using ISTH definition. STROBE recommendations were used in order to enhance reporting. RESULTS: A total of 793 patients from 79 centers were included in the study with 593 being hospitalized (74.8%). Among these, 511 were defined as having severe COVID: 162 were admitted to the ICU while 349 received oxygen supplementation outside the ICU. Most patients (90.5%) were receiving thromboprophylaxis. During COVID-19 treatment, 11.1% developed a thromboembolic event, while 5.0% experienced bleeding. Thrombosis developed in 21.6% of patients who were not receiving thromboprophylaxis, in contrast to 10.6% of patients who were on thromboprophylaxis. Bleeding episodes were more frequent in patients receiving intermediate/therapeutic versus prophylactic doses of low-molecular-weight heparin (LWMH) (8.1% vs. 3.8%, respectively) and in elderly. In multivariate analysis, peak D-dimer level and C-reactive protein to albumin ratio were poor prognostic factors for thrombosis occurrence (OR?=?1.022, 95%CI 1.007?1.038 and OR?=?1.025, 95%CI 1.001?1.051, respectively), while thromboprophylaxis use was protective (OR?=?0.199, 95%CI 0.061?0.645). Age and LMWH intermediate/therapeutic dose administration were prognostic factors in multivariate model for bleeding (OR?=?1.062, 95%CI 1.017-1.109 and OR?=?2.438, 95%CI 1.023-5.813, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with CLL affected by severe COVID-19 are at a high risk of thrombosis if thromboprophylaxis is not used, but also at increased risk of bleeding under the LMWH intermediate/therapeutic dose administration

COVID-19 severity and mortality in patients with CLL: an update of the international ERIC and Campus CLL study

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) may be more susceptible to Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to age, disease, and treatment-related immunosuppression. We aimed to assess risk factors of outcome and elucidate the impact of CLL-directed treatments on the course of COVID-19. We conducted a retrospective, international study, collectively including 941 patients with CLL and confirmed COVID-19. Data from the beginning of the pandemic until March 16, 2021, were collected from 91 centers. The risk factors of case fatality rate (CFR), disease severity, and overall survival (OS) were investigated. OS analysis was restricted to patients with severe COVID-19 (definition: hospitalization with need of oxygen or admission into an intensive care unit). CFR in patients with severe COVID-19 was 38.4%. OS was inferior for patients in all treatment categories compared to untreated (p < 0.001). Untreated patients had a lower risk of death (HR = 0.54, 95% CI:0.41–0.72). The risk of death was higher for older patients and those suffering from cardiac failure (HR = 1.03, 95% CI:1.02–1.04; HR = 1.79, 95% CI:1.04–3.07, respectively). Age, CLL-directed treatment, and cardiac failure were significant risk factors of OS. Untreated patients had a better chance of survival than those on treatment or recently treated