AN EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS OF MARKETING-MIX IMPACT ON SUPPLY CHANNELS USED BY COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS ENGAGED IN HEALTHCARE SERVICES IN NIGERIA

Objective: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of marketing-mix concepts on the purchasing engagements of community pharmacists with supply channels in low and middle-income settings. Secondly, to use an Impact scale to measure the dominant marketing-mix factors that influence procurement decision-making practices. Methods: A descriptive study that used self-administered questionnaires, distributed to community pharmacists from March to May 2021 in Southwestern, Nigeria. A mixed-method sampling technique was adopted. Ethical approval was given by the Ministry of health (HPRS/381/371). Study outcomes were compared against measures of the Impact scale. Descriptive and Inferential statistics were used to test the study hypotheses using SPSS-25. Significance was set at p<0.05 Results: The response rate was 79.6% representing 398 community pharmacists. Age of community pharmacists had significant association with price-sensitivity (p<0.01). Community pharmacists with more employees tended to be price-sensitive (p=0.003). Promotion variable had the highest influence (Mean score=2.73, SD=0.43, Impact-level=moderate), followed by Price (Mean score=2.65, SD=0.34, Impact-level=moderate), Place (Mean score=2.61, SD=0.51, Impact-level=moderate), Perception (Mean score=2.48, SD=0.42, Impact-level=low), and the least impactful was Product (Mean score=2.46, SD=0.41, Impact level=low). The study revealed an overall low-to-moderate involvement (Mean score=2.59, SD=0.42) and influence of marketing-mix on the level of engagement of community pharmacists with supply channels. Conclusion: Findings suggest a shift of focus away from product-based considerations. Therefore, the study recommends a more balanced decision approach using an Impact rating scale. Improved focus on key priorities that can positively impact quality pharmaceutical care to the patient is advocated

Realisation of the Right to Health in Nigeria: The Prospects of a Dialogic Approach

This paper examines the status of the right to health under Nigerian law and makes a case for an inter-institutional collaboration for its realisation. The importance of the right underscores the need for the government to engender a workable healthcare framework for its citizens. The paper finds that although there are laws that mandate the Nigerian government to ensure healthcare delivery for the citizens, these laws are not implemented. While arguments have been offered for the constitutionalisation and judicialisation of the right to health, this paper, however, contends that mere constitutionalisation or judicialisation may not bring about a practical or effective realisation of the right, as the present non-realisation is not due to a lack of legal framework but a lack of political will to implement laws and policies on the subject matter. It, therefore, recommends a court-facilitated inter-institutional dialogue among all branches of government and relevant stakeholders, with a view to emplacing a real-world realisation of the righ

Sustainable design of built infrastructure and engineering services for South African universities

Published ThesisUniversities have made great strides in research and the development of new knowledge. They are known as centres of enlightenment. However, there is a need for universities to lead by example in other respects, in particular in limiting the environmental impact on cities. This is in respect of the sustainability of built infrastructure and the services provided on campuses, in the wake of challenges of climate change. Practical applications of research in the areas of high-performance buildings, can impact a city positively. Evidences from literature indicate that most of the South African cities were poorly designed from an ecological perspective and have large environmental impacts. New building standards have been recommended but are not comprehensive enough to address problems related to the performance of university buildings and infrastructure. Therefore, the aim of this research was to develop an appropriate model for building performance evaluation in higher education institutions based on assessment of parameters for achieving Energy Efficiency (EE), Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). The study was executed by multiple case study approach because it permitted case studies of three university campuses in South Africa. The target universities constituted the units of analysis and therefore provided opportunity for in-depth assessment of building parameters of size, orientation, fenestrations, building materials, type of ventilation, building function, type of lighting, and behaviour of occupants to determine their effects on the categories of EE, IEQ and WUE. Data collection included both qualitative and quantitative approaches, which were used to establish relationships between the various parameters and how they affect EE, which in turn is influenced by WUE which affects IEQ. A system dynamic model was used to determine causal relations of the building parameters EE, IEQ and WUE. This approach constitutes an innovative and pioneering contribution to building performance evaluation. The study has established a basic level of awareness and understanding among design- and construction practitioners of the importance of the use of System Dynamics in building performance evaluation, which can be used as a tool for delivering strategic objectives in the preliminary designs of educational buildings and infrastructure. The results of the study contribute to building guidelines for sustainable design of educational neighbourhoods for the transformation of campuses, which in turn can motivate beneficial changes for more sustainable performance of the built facilities

Uncertainties in simulation model for ice loads prediction in level ice with respect to structural reliability

Arctic shipping is increasingly in focus due to the diminishing ice cover due to the effects of climate change. With new shipping routes opening up, navigation in ice-covered waters receives increasing attention in industry and academia. One of the key issues in the design of ice-going vessels is the required plate thickness to withstand the ice loads. Several regulations have been developed, containing formulae for determining the place thickness for different ice classes. On the other hand, various engineering tools have been developed for simulating the ship performance in ice, with several of these tools explicitly aiming to determine the ice loads on the hull. Such tools in principle provide alternative means to determine the safety level of the hull elements based on first-principle modeling. In this report, a risk-based design approach is taken as a starting point for contextualizing the determination of the required plate thickness based on a structural reliability analysis. The focus of the work is to analyze the importance of the uncertainties in the ice loads resulting from a ship performance in ice simulation model, in relation to the structural reliability as calculated based on the simulated ice load time series. The study centered on the influence of the applied empirical parameters in the model design on the predicted ice loads with respect to the long-term safety and reliability analysis of the ship. The various assumptions in the simulation model for ship performance in ice are systematically varied to quantify the uncertainty about the safety index and failure probability of a plate under ice loading. The results showed that the predicted loads from the simulation model lead to some about of uncertainties across the investigated parameters, indicating the limited usefulness of the simulation model in a risk-based design context. The estimated uncertainties were however based on the relative variations of the simulated ice loads and the estimated safety index corresponding to each case studied. With these results, the suspicion for inherent uncertainties in the ice prediction model’s performance associated with the applied parameters was justified. Hence, to obtain better or improved performance from the ice prediction model, the sources of uncertainties should be minimized or eliminated. Also, with the ultimate aim of developing models and tools for risk-based design of ships in Arctic and other ice-covered waters, areas of further research and development in context of the ship performance in ice simulation model are highlighted to reduce the uncertainties

Resilience Discourse: A Critical Study of Nigeria’s Incumbent and Opposition Political Campaign Speeches

Considering the challenges associated with visibility and intraparty disputes which confronted different categories of political parties during Nigeria’s 2019 electoral process, this paper examines the discursive means through which political actors expressed resilience in their struggle for power. Using a Critical Discourse Analysis approach, the paper investigates candidates’/parties’ expression of their abilities to cope, regain control and reduce vulnerability during the campaigns. The All-Progressives Congress Party, People’s Democratic Party and Allied Congress Party of Nigeria were selected for the study because they represented incumbency, main opposition and the third force parties respectively during the campaigns. Data comprising twenty-three election campaign speeches were purposively selected from some Nigeria’s media websites. Findings show that political actors deployed strategies of argumentation, categorization and criminalisation among others to (re)gain control and to minimise vulnerability during the campaigns. In addition, the research reveals Nigerian political actors’ predilection for character assassination of Others as a means of survival in the nation’s political arena. The results have implications for Nigeria’s power politics and, in addition, raise concerns for voters’ education and sustenance of democracy in the countr

Analysis of factors influencing pharmaceutical sales workforce engagement in pharmaceutical marketing in Nigeria: a structural equation modeling approach

In the pharmaceutical sales and marketing industry, human capital in terms of the sales workforce is essential to  organizational success. However, there is a need to ensure that the task-environment is adequately resourced. The application of structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques such as factor analysis is necessary to further understand the underlying relevance of these factors. The objective of the study was to explore the factors influencing pharmaceutical sales personnel's work engagement in pharmaceutical companies using factor analysis. A cross-sectional, qualitative research study used an 11-item literature-guided questionnaire administered online to 406 medical sales professionals in the pharmaceutical supply network in Nigeria using random sampling. The factors evaluated include regularity and impact of training,  marketing support, job security as perceived by the employee, incentives, reward for performance, and the prospect of promotion. Others include; minimal work stress, improved career prospects, and an enabling work environment provided for employees involved in pharmaceutical sales operations. The questions were rated on a 3-point Likert scale of 1=fair, 3=poor, and 5=good, to  evaluate respondents’ estimation of factors. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was executed on the dataset and thereafter, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on the dataset using SPSS AMOS. Statistical significance was set at p-value < 0.05. The majority of respondents were male (72.2%, 293) and female (27.8%, 113). Respondents from Indigenous firms were predominant (249, 61.3%) compared to Multinational firms (157, 38.7%). There were 289 (71.2%) non-pharmacists and 117 (28.8%) pharmacists. EFA measures of adequacy were satisfactory (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin=0.878, Goodness-of-fit=0.023, Cronbach alpha=0.859, Total variance explained= 51.6%) and produced a 2-factor solution consisting of 9-items (work factors=6, implied factors=3). CFA solution from EFA output produced satisfactory fit estimates (RMSEA=0.044, CMIN/DF=1.787, GF1=0.977, AGFI=0.957, RMR=0.029, and TLI=0.981). The final model had acceptable convergent and discriminant validity values. Job security was considered as the most influential factor (regression coefficient=0.859) and the least was work-life balance (regression coefficient=0.559). The study provided a validated tool to evaluate the pharmaceutical sales workforce’s estimation of the key factors influencing job performance. This serves as an operational template for strategic managers in pharmaceutical companies to improve employee’s perception of management support

Evaluation of Reduced Washing and Hot Packing as Shelf-Life Extenders of Creamed Cottage Cheese.

Cottage cheese coagulum, formed by direct acidification of 189 liters of 12.00% reconstituted nonfat dry milk (NFDM), was cut, cooked and drained. Without washing, curd was creamed with hot dressing, held for various times to allow cream absorption, packaged, cooled and stored at 5(DEGREES)C. Dressing temperatures of 60, 71 or 82(DEGREES)C and holding times of 0, 30 or 60 min were investigated in order to determine the best combination for unwashed curd. Such parameters as yield, curd-to-cream ratio, amount of free cream, total solids, fat, microbiology, organoleptic properties and shelf-life were used to evaluate creamed unwashed cottage cheese quality. No-washing treatment resulted in good yields and high total solids, but all combinations of dressing temperatures and holding times were not considerably different in cheese quality. However, organoleptic properties were comparable to those found in conventional cheese, but shelf-life was much longer. The combination of 71(DEGREES)C dressing and zero-holding was selected as most suitable for unwashed curd. Samples from this combination attained a 47d shelf-life, while receiving flavor ratings of 7.0 (1-10 scale) at 0d, 7.0 at 7d, 6.8 at 14d, 6.3 at 21d and 5.3 at shelf-life. On using 71(DEGREES)C dressing and zero-holding combination in conjunction with different curd forming methods, cheese quality was not significantly different. However, samples from hot dressing were much better in some attributes than their conventional counterparts. Hot packed samples attained 50d shelf-life, whereas control (conventional) cheese barely survived 35d. Comparisons involving zero, one and two washes with the combination showed that zero wash samples were not different from one wash in flavor, but were somehow lower than two washes. One and two washes were not different flavorwise. Cheese treated with 71(DEGREES)C dressing containing added starter distillate received higher flavor ratings than untreated samples through 35d during storage, thenceforth scores were about the same through shelf-life

The Moderating Role of Perceived Reward on Leadership Style and Policy Involvement Effects on Job Performance among Pharmaceutical Managers

Management and behavioral sciences literature has established a direct link between rewards and employee performance. However, limited research exists on the role of perceived reward on the effects of policy strategy involvement and leadership style on the performance of pharmaceutical managers. Intuitively, perceived rewards may have a potential impact on the behavior and attitudes of pharmaceutical managers toward work, and invariably job performance. Based on the incentive theory of motivation framework, the study explored the causal effect of leadership style, and policy involvement on job performance, and the moderating effect of perceived reward among pharmaceutical managers. Comparative differences in perception between operational and strategic managers were evaluated. A cross-sectional web-based questionnaire survey of a random stratified sample of managers (103 strategic and 138 operational) engaged in pharmaceutical marketing. Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the developed model. Construct validity and fit measures of the hypothetical model were adequate. Policy strategy involvement and leadership style had a positive and significant influence on job performance. Moderation analysis showed that low perceived reward significantly weakened the impact of policy engagement on performance. Integrating improved managers’ involvement with policy and strategy development with commensurate rewards is an incentive strategy to improve managers’ job performance. The study was restricted to only two major managerial groups. More job-related behavioral constructs are required to improve the generalizability of findings, which is suggested for further research.Management and behavioral sciences literature has established a direct link between rewards and employee performance. However, limited research exists on the role of perceived reward on the effects of policy strategy involvement and leadership style on the performance of pharmaceutical managers. Intuitively, perceived rewards may potentially impact pharmaceutical managers' behavior and attitudes toward work and, invariably, job performance. Based on the incentive theory of motivation framework, the study explored the causal effect of leadership style and policy involvement on job performance and the moderating effect of perceived reward among pharmaceutical managers. Comparative differences in perception between operational and strategic managers were evaluated. A cross-sectional web-based questionnaire survey of a random stratified sample of managers (103 strategic and 138 operational) engaged in pharmaceutical marketing. Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the developed model. Construct validity and appropriate measures of the hypothetical model were adequate. Policy strategy involvement and leadership style positively and significantly influenced job performance. Moderation analysis showed that low perceived reward significantly weakened the impact of policy engagement on performance. Integrating improved managers’ involvement with policy and strategy development with commensurate rewards is an incentive strategy to improve managers’ job performance. The study was restricted to only two major managerial groups. More job-related behavioral constructs are required to improve the generalizability of findings, which is suggested for further research