How Do Firms Set Prices? Survey Evidence from Ireland

Despite the importance of understanding and estimating the “stickiness” of prices of goods and services, empirical assessment of price setting behaviour by firms has remained relatively limited. This is the first paper to provide detailed information on the pressures, manner and frequency with which Irish firms adjust their output prices. Using survey information from almost a thousand Irish firms, we present a number of stylised facts on price setting behaviour. One of the first of these relates to the level of control firms have over their pricing strategy – the most common approach for firms is to set a price based on costs and a self-determined profit margin. However, one-third of firms said that their price was set primarily by following that of their closest competitors. The perceived intensity of competition was found to be one of the most significant factors in determining the price-setting approach and is also a central factor in determining price changes

Attacks on midwives, attacks on women’s choices

Nadine Edwards, Jo Murphy-Lawless, Mavis Kirkham and Sarah Davies ask whether recent attacks on midwives are a Human Rights issu

How Can a State Control Swallowing? The Home Use of Abortion Pills in Ireland

Evidence suggests that there is widespread home use of abortion pills in Ireland and that ending a pregnancy in this way is potentially safer than the alternatives available to many women. This paper argues that there is a strong case for women with unwanted pregnancies to be offered truthful and objective information regarding the use of abortion pills by trusted local professionals and, further, that this is possible within existing law. A move in this direction would not, however, negate the need for legal reform to address the fundamental moral incoherence of a law that treats women who terminate pregnancies within Ireland as criminals but those who travel to access services overseas as victims in need of support. In support of these arguments, the paper draws on both library research and a small number of interviews with government officials, service providers and activist

A Cox-Aalen model for interval-censored data

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Boruvka, A., and Cook, R. J. (2015), A Cox-Aalen Model for Interval-censored Data. Scand J Statist, 42, 414–426. doi: 10.1111/sjos.12113., which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/sjos.12113/full. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.The Cox-Aalen model, obtained by replacing the baseline hazard function in the well-known Cox model with a covariate-dependent Aalen model, allows for both fixed and dynamic covariate effects. In this paper, we examine maximum likelihood estimation for a Cox-Aalen model based on interval-censored failure times with fixed covariates. The resulting estimator globally converges to the truth slower than the parametric rate, but its finite-dimensional component is asymptotically efficient. Numerical studies show that estimation via a constrained Newton method performs well in terms of both finite sample properties and processing time for moderate-to-large samples with few covariates. We conclude with an application of the proposed methods to assess risk factors for disease progression in psoriatic arthritis.Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (RGPIN 155849); Canadian Institutes for Health Research (FRN 13887); Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) – CIHR funded (950-226626

Factors associated with crisis pregnancies in Ireland: Findings from three nationally representative sexual health surveys

Background: Findings on the demographic and sexual health characteristics associated with the experience of a crisis pregnancy is important to inform the public health policy of a country, including Ireland. Findings from other jurisdictions have suggested that certain demographic groups are at risk for unintended pregnancies and the disparity between the groups have been growing in recent years. Ireland is a country which experienced much economic and societal change in the first decade of the 21st century, changes which are likely to have affected demographic variables pertaining to sexual health. The current study had two aims: to investigate changes in the socioeconomic characteristics associated with crisis pregnancies over a seven year period [2003 to 2010], and to investigate the recent [2010] socioeconomic risk factors associated with crisis pregnancies in Ireland. Methods: The study compared the results from 18-45 year old women using data from three broadly similar nationally representative Irish sexual health surveys carried out in 2003, 2004-2006 and 2010. Chi square analysis compared of the socioeconomic characteristics across the seven year period and found that a higher proportion of women with two or more children and women for whom religion was not important reported a crisis pregnancy in 2010 compared with earlier years. A logistic regression then investigated the sexual health history and socioeconomic factors associated with the experience of a recent crisis pregnancy using the most recent 2010 data. Results: Receipt of sex education and contraception use at first sex significantly predicted the experiencing of a recent crisis pregnancy. Younger women and those with a lower level of education were more likely to report having experienced a recent crisis pregnancy. Conclusion: Similar demographic groups are at risk for experiencing a crisis pregnancy in Ireland compared with international research, yet the disparities between demographic groups who have experienced a crisis pregnancy appear to be decreasing rather than increasing over a seven year period. Recommendations are made with regard to the provision of continued sex education throughout the lifespan, particularly for those women who are at an increased risk of experiencing a crisis pregnancy

Exploring barriers and enablers to the delivery of Making Every Contact Count brief behavioural interventions in Ireland: A cross-sectional survey study

Objectives The public health impact of the Irish Making Every Contact Count (MECC) brief intervention programme is dependent on delivery by health care professionals. We aimed to identify enablers and modifiable barriers to MECC intervention delivery to optimize MECC implementation. Design Online cross-sectional survey design. Methods Health care professionals (n = 4050) who completed MECC eLearning were invited to complete an online survey based on the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). Multiple regression analysis identified predictors of MECC delivery (logistic regression to predict delivery or not; linear regression to predict frequency of delivery). Data were visualized using Confidence Interval-Based Estimates of Relevance (CIBER). Results Seventy-nine per cent of participants (n = 283/357) had delivered a MECC intervention. In the multiple logistic regression (Nagelkerke's R2 = .34), the significant enablers of intervention delivery were ‘professional role’ (OR = 1.86 [1.10, 3.15]) and ‘intentions/goals’ (OR = 4.75 [1.97, 11.45]); significant barriers included ‘optimistic beliefs about consequences’ (OR = .41 [.18, .94]) and ‘negative emotions’ (OR = .50 [.32, .77]). In the multiple linear regression (R2 = .29), the significant enablers of frequency of MECC delivery were ‘intentions/goals’ (b = 10.16, p = .02) and professional role (b = 6.72, p = .03); the significant barriers were ‘negative emotions’ (b = −4.74, p = .04) and ‘barriers to prioritisation’ (b = −5.00, p = .01). CIBER analyses suggested six predictive domains with substantial room for improvement: ‘intentions and goals’, ‘barriers to prioritisation’, ‘environmental resources’, ‘beliefs about capabilities’, ‘negative emotions’ and ‘skills’. Conclusion Implementation interventions to enhance MECC delivery should target intentions and goals, beliefs about capabilities, negative emotions, environmental resources, skills and barriers to prioritization

PART III. ASSESSING IRRITATION: Sensory Irritation: Relation to Indoor Air Pollution

All mucosae of the body possess chemical sensitivity provided by the common chemical sense (CCS). Airborne chemicals can stimulate the CCS through the ocular, nasal, and respiratory mucosae, evoking different pungent sensations, e.g., stinging, irritation, burning, piquancy, prickling, freshness, tingling. Pungent sensations elicited in the nose differ from odor sensations in various characteristics. They are achieved at considerably higher concentrations than those necessary to elicit odor, but they increase with the concentration of the stimulus in a steeper fashion than odor. Pungent sensations from mixtures of compounds show a higher degree of addition - relative to the pungency of the individual components - than that of odor sensations. Pungency is more resistant to adaptation than odor, and, unlike it, displays considerable temporal integration with continuous stimulation. Measurement of a reflex, transitory apnea produced upon inhalation of pungent chemicals holds promise as an objective indicator of the functional status of the CCS. Results from the measurement of this reflex have agreed quantitatively with sensory data in a number of studies, showing higher common chemical sensitivity in nonsmokers - compared to smokers -, in females - compared to males -, and in young adults - compared to elderly. Research issues mentioned here include the following:      - We can rarely validate the symptoms putatively caused by indoor air pollution objectively. Without such means, we will always have the potential problem of over-reporting and embellishment. Although one person may seem more sensitive than another, the difference may lie in a greater proclivity to complain.      - Studies of anosmic persons offer a simple means to understand the functional characteristics of the nasal CCS.   Studies of chemical series in such subjects should eventually allow construction of quantitative structure-activity models for human pungency perception. The human data can be compared with relevant animal data when possible.      - The rules of additivity of pungency in mixtures need explication. Regarding the possible role of VOCs in the creation of irritation, we need to ask whether subthreshold levels add up or even amplify each other to produce noticeable irritation. Do repetitive or continuous exposures to subthreshold concentrations increase sensitivity to those substances, so that they evoke pungency when they otherwise would not? Do the various mucosae - ocular, nasal, throat - differ in their sensitivity?      - Modulation of CCS sensitivity by long-term and short-term inhalation of various agents (e.g., environmental tobacco smoke) would seem a suitable topic for further research

Women and healthcare providers' perceptions of a midwife-led unit in a Swiss university hospital: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: The development of medical-led care in obstetrics over the past decades has contributed to improving outcomes for both mother and child. Although efficiency has improved in complex situations, unnecessary interventions are still practiced in low-risk pregnancies, contrary to international recommendations. A shift to a less interventionist model of care has encouraged many countries to review their policies on maternal health care and develop models such as the "midwife-led unit" (MLU) where the midwife plays a predominant role with a minimum of routine intervention. Existing research has provided convincing evidence that MLUs lead to better maternal and neonatal outcomes when compared to traditional models. They not only improve the level of satisfaction amongst women, but are also associated with reduced healthcare costs. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of women and healthcare providers regarding the creation of an MLU in a Swiss university hospital. METHODS: A descriptive research study using qualitative methods was conducted among pregnant women and new mothers in a Swiss maternity unit, including also midwives and medical staff. Data collection was carried out through one-to-one interviews, focus groups, and telephone interviews (n = 63). After transcription, thematic analysis was performed. RESULTS: The triangulation of perceptions of women and healthcare providers indicated support for the implementation of an MLU to promote physiological delivery. Most women welcomed the idea of an MLU, in particular how it could help in offering continuity of care. Healthcare providers were optimistic about the implementation of an MLU and recognised the need for some women to have access to a less interventionist approach. From the women's perspective, barriers concerned the lack of awareness of midwives' full scope of practice, while barriers for midwives and obstetricians were related to the challenge to develop a good interprofessional collaboration. CONCLUSION: Alternative models to provide maternity care for low-risk women have been developed and evaluated widely in several countries outside Switzerland. This study showed that women and healthcare providers were favourable towards the development of a new care model, while taking into account the specific expectations and barriers raised by participants