Why Isn’t the Accident Information Shared? A Coopetition Perspective

The purpose of this paper is to investigate both cooperative and competitive strategies of firms that may cause accidents. The firms may exchange information about the previous accidents associated with their products in order to reduce accident probabilities and the amount of damage. Thus, these firms may cooperate on this point. On the other hand, they compete on quantities after deciding whether accident information is to be disclosed. This situation is termed coopetition. In order to address the issue of disclosure of accident information, an economic model is developed and it derives two main conclusions. First, there is a unique equilibrium where firms choose to not disclose their accident information. Second, the equilibrium strategies of firms are Pareto inferior for them when the condition relating to marginal effort costs and potential demands is satisfied. Thus, whether the coopetitive situation that firms exchange their accident information cooperatively and choose their quantity levels competitively is desirable for firms depends on the magnitude of the cost reduction and demand reduction effects

Population-based assessment of the incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of anaerobic bloodstream infections

Background: Anaerobes are a relatively uncommon but important cause of bloodstream infection. However, their epidemiology has not been well defined in non-selected populations. We sought to describe the incidence of, risk factors for, and outcomes associated with anaerobic bacteremia. Methods: Population-based surveillance for bacteremia with anaerobic microorganisms was conducted in the Calgary area (population 1.2 million) during the period from 2000 to 2008. Results: A total of 904 incident cases were identified, for an overall population incidence of 8.7 per 100,000 per year; 231 (26 %) were nosocomial, 300 (33 %) were healthcare-associated community-onset, and 373 (41 %) were community-acquired. Elderly males were at the greatest risk. The most common pathogens identified were: Bacteroides fragilis group (3.6 per 100,000), Clostridium (non-perfringens) spp. (1.1 per 100,000), Peptostreptococcus spp. (0.9 per 100,000), and Clostridium perfringens (0.7 per 100,000). Non-susceptibility to metronidazole was 2 %, to clindamycin 17 %, and to penicillin 42 %. Relative to the general population, risk factors for anaerobic bloodstream infection included: male sex, increasing age, a prior diagnosis of cancer, chronic liver disease, heart disease, diabetes mellitus, stroke, inflammatory bowel disease, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and/or hemodialysis-dependent chronic renal failure (HDCRF). The 30-day mortality was 20 %. Increasing age, nosocomial acquisition, presence of malignancy, and several other co-morbid illnesses were independently associated with an increased risk of death. Conclusion: Anaerobic bloodstream infection is responsible for a significant burden of disease in general populations. The data herein establish the extent to which anaerobes contribute to morbidity and subsequent mortality. This information is key in developing preventative, empiric treatment and research priorities.</p