Challenges faced by Pakistani Women Social Entrepreneurs in War against Terrorism affected Areas

In recent years, Pakistan controls on terrorism activities and move forward towards economic stability. For this stability and sustainability both genders are supposed to contribute in economic development and growth. According to study only 1% women social entrepreneurs out of 21% of male social entrepreneurs are operating in Pakistan. This shows the lowest rate of females operating in social business ventures inside Pakistan. This research is based on identifying the challenges faced by women Social Entrepreneurs from KPK and FATA (terrorism affected areas), Pakistan. Women in these areas have sturdy social and cultural influence. Therefore, it is important to identify what factors affecting the process of their operations and in executing their businesses in the local market. Moreover, about 88 to 90% of females started their businesses in social defiance. Hence, most of them work quietly for the first year in business. This research will address those challenging factors faced by women social entrepreneurs of KPK and FATA in daily life. Keywords: Social Entrepreneur, Women Empowerment, Start-ups, Gender-gap. DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/12-18-17 Publication date:June 30th 202

PREVALENCE OF DYSLEXIA AMONG UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AT BUITEMS

Dyslexia is identified in adults as a reading difficulty who faces phonological issues when reading though they possess the normal intelligence required for correct and fluent reading. Dyslexia is quite common with an incidence rate of approximately 5 to 10 % in adults. Dyslexic adult students struggle in reading and writing, mispronounces words, faces difficulty in remembering dates, names, etc. and verbal instruction, poor recall of conversations or events, etc. These verbal problems may create issues for them in carrying out their studies and thus their academics will be affected. &nbsp

Abstracts from the 7th annual neurology research day, shifa international hospital, islamabad

:It\u27s a cross sectional study conducted at CP clinic of Armed Forces institute of Rehabilitation medicine Rawalpindi from Jan 2012 to Jan 2013. All cerebral palsy children above 2 years of age and both genders were included in study. SPSS version 17 was used for data analysis

Interobserver reliability of the renal nephrometry scoring system: Experience from a developing nation

Introduction: The RENAL (radius, exophytic/endophytic properties, nearness of tumor to the collecting system or sinus in millimeters, anterior/posterior, location relative to polar lines) nephrometry score (RENAL-NS) has been described as a structured and quantifiable method to describe a renal tumor’s relevant anatomic features as they relate to the complexity of the lesion. We aim to evaluate a tumor’s RENAL-NS and to assess the reproducibility of the score among different observers.Methods: This retrospective study included 49 patients diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who had complete computed tomography (CT) data, RENAL-NS, and histopathology results. All patients underwent renal surgery/intervention at our center between January 2008 and December 2018. The radius of the lesion, exophytic/endophytic properties, nearness to the collecting system, anterior or posterior description, and location relative to the polar lines was used to calculate the score. Tumor complexity was graded as low, intermediate, or high. Two body imaging radiologists evaluated the data independently.Results: Interobserver agreement for each of the RENAL-NS parameters, respectively, and overall complexity was calculated. The total agreement was 82%, 51%, 84%, 69%, 73%, and 90%, corresponding to Kappa values of 0.72, 0.33, 0.44, 0.49, 0.58, and 0.83, respectively. The radius, nearness to the collecting system, and total complexity showed the best agreement. Exophytic properties of the lesion showed the least agreement. For cases that were discordant in terms of the final score, no major implications in surgical planning were observed.Conclusion: The results of this study show that the RENAL-NS is a useful tool to assess the anatomical features of renal tumors and it is easily reproducible, even for less experienced radiologists in a developing nation

The effect of financial development and MFI’s characteristics on the efficiency and sustainability of micro financial institutions

Artigo publicado em revista científica internacionalThe Micro Financial Institutions (MFIs) have been touted as development strategies for Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs) which merits research into the effect of financial development on the efficiency and sustainability of the MFIs. The Efficient and sustainable MFIs significantly paved the way for the economic development of a country particularly in developing countries. Surprisingly there are very rare studies that examine the nexus of financial development, MFIs efficiency, and sustainability. Also, these studies are confined to the impact of financial development either on the efficiency or sustainability of MFIs. Addressing this gap, the study attempts to explore the country-specific and MFIs-specific factors which significantly affect the efficiency and sustainability of the MFIs. For this purpose, the study first determines whether financial development contributes to the efficiency and sustainability of MFI. Secondly, the effect of MFIs’ specific characteristics such as credit risk, market risk, liquidity risk, lending strategy, Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) funds management, financial outreach, and poverty alleviation on the efficiency and sustainability of MFIs. The study has been conducted for Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan consisting of a panel data set of 12 MFIs over a period spanning from 2008–2018 using Stochastic Frontier Analysis and Cobb Douglas production function regression analysis. Overall empirical analysis reveals that financial development has significantly affected the efficiency and sustainability of the MFIs. While specific characteristics such as poverty alleviation and DFIs funds management have been shown to improve MFIs efficiency whereas an increase in credit risk, lending strategy, and market risk decrease MFIs sustainability and liquidity risk along with an increase in financial outreach leads to a decrease in MFIs efficiency. The directions and magnitudes of the findings suggest the stakeholders for all three countries for the significant direction leads to the efficiency and sustainability of MFIs. Moreover, future research could strive to understand the aspects of financial development which negatively correlate with the MFIs’ efficiency and sustainability such as stringent tax policies, creditor rights protection, and implementation of rules and regulations.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

An assessment of the impact of flow disruptions on mental workload and performance of surgeons during percutaneous nephrolithotomy

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of intraoperative disruptions on surgeons’ workload and performance during percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL).Materials and methods: A structured and standardized tool was used to identify disruptions and interferences that occurred during 33 PCNL procedures. The surgical steps during PCNL were divided into four phases: ureteric catheter placement (phase I), puncture and tract dilation (phase II), intra-calyceal navigation and stone fragmentation (phase III), and tube placement (phase IV). Surgeons’ workload was evaluated using a validated tool: Surgery Task Load Index (SURG-TLX), and correlated with the mean observed intraoperative disruptions. All operating team members evaluated the teamwork immediately after the procedure. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics version 22 (IBM, Armonk, NY).Results: A total of 1,897 disturbances were observed, with an average of 57.48 ± 16.36 disruptions per case. The largest number of disruptions occurred during phase III of PCNL (32.06 ± 14.12). The most common cause of the disruption was people entering or exiting the operating room (OR) (29.1 ± 10.03/case), followed by the ringing of phones or pagers (6.42 ± 2.4). The mean observed intraoperative disruptions were significantly associated with the operating surgeon’s mental workload, and it had a significant impact on all domains of surgeons’ mental workload as measured by SURG-TLX. Compared to other team members, surgeons’ assistants experienced an inferior sense of teamwork (r=-0.433; p=0.012).Conclusion: Significant intraoperative disruptions were observed during PCNL. They were observed to directly correlate with the surgeon\u27s workload and had a detrimental effect on teamwork. Improving OR dynamics by reducing unnecessary disruptions would help establish an efficient and smooth surgical work environment for safe surgical care

Prevalence, distribution and antibiotic resistance of emergent Arcobacter spp. from clinically healthy cattle and goats

Prevalence, distribution and antibiotic resistance of Arcobacter spp. were investigated in cattle, goats, floor and treated water samples in this study. The prevalence of Arcobacter in adult and young was recorded as 8/110 (7.27%) and 4/83 (4.81%), respectively, which showed insignificant difference (P = 0.3503) in detection rates between adult and young cattle. A total of 33.33% of the floor samples and 11.11% of the treated water samples analysed were determined as positive for Arcobacter. Among the species isolated, over all, A. butzleri (45%) was the most frequently detected species, followed by A. skirrowii (5%). A. butzleri was isolated from adult cattle, floor and water samples at the rates of 75.0%, 33.4% and 50%, respectively. Co-colonization of species was not uncommon, and 50% of the samples were carrying more than one Arcobacter species. Only 12.5% sample from cattle (adult) was detected positive for only A. skirrowii. All samples from young animals, floor and water contained mixed isolates. None of the samples from goat farm was found to be carrying Arcobacter species. On profiling of antimicrobial resistance patterns, it was found that only one A. butzleri isolate (3.7%) was sensitive to all nine antibiotics tested. A. butzleri was found highly resistant to ampicillin (55.6%), followed by cefotaxime (33.4%) and ciprofloxacin (33.4%). Overall, 20% of the isolates showed multidrug resistance (resistant ≥4 antibiotics). Gentamicin and enrofloxacin can be used as drugs of choice for the treatment for Arcobacter infection

Impact of Corona Virus Disease in Health Care Professionals in Managing Patients with Positive Disease in Pakistan

ObjectiveThe present was conducted to evaluate psychological impact of COVID-19 infection in health care professionals while treating Corona Virus positive patients.Study and Design Descriptive Observational cross Sectional studyMethods and Materials The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21) are a set of three self-report scales designed to measure the emotional states of depression, anxiety and stress. The DASS-21 incorporated in a questionnaire form was distributed among the healthcare professionals that were involved in direct management of COVID-19 patients. 224 consented HCPs participated in this cross sectional study, during MAY 2020, nearing the end of the first wave of this pandemic in Pakistan. Results The results were broken down to scores assigned to: Anxiety (overall mean score 19.01 ± 9.2), with 192 (85.7%) HCPs experiencing moderate to extremely severe anxiety;Depression (overall mean score 18.12 ± 10), with 162 (72.3%) HCPs being moderate to extremely severely depressed;Stress (overall mean score 20.12 ± 12.0), 202 (90.1%) HCPs reporting moderate to extreme stress levels. Conclusions Our study highlights the negative effect of this pandemic, despite the steadfastness to serve, on the psychological well being of our healthcare professionals. As the corona virus pandemic continues, the levels of, anxiety, stress and depression are expected to increase among our major workforce and the main defense against the deadly virus. Hence the mental well being of our doctors and paramedics should be scrutinized often and necessary measures should be taken at a national level to ensure the better functioning of our health care system