Attracting young talents through a Campus Crew Program

Bearing in mind that the Management of Talent is precisely suited to today’s dynamic and competitive environment, and that three generations currently compose the organizations’ workforce, the practice of “Employer Branding” arises. Effective Employer Branding is a source of competitive advantage, increments the internalization of company values while retaining their employees. It is vital that companies distinguish themselves from competitors and develop a Strategy that attracts the top talented job seekers. The purpose of this Master Project is to present a Strategic Plan for Company Alpha (fictional name) regarding a “Campus Crew Ambassador Program” at the Portuguese Universities. This Program is designed to improve the Company’s brand awareness among University students and to attract them towards working in this leading European Bank.Considerando que a Gestão de Talentos se enquadra num ambiente de trabalho dinâmico e competitivo e que a atual força de trabalho é composta por três gerações distintas, a prática de Employer Branding emerge. Uma estratégia eficaz de Employer Branding representa uma fonte de vantagem competitiva, potencia o aumento de internalização dos valores da empresa e contribui para a retenção dos trabalhadores. Torna-se, por isso, crucial que as empresas se distingam dos seus competidores e que desenvolvam uma Estratégia que atraia os candidatos mais talentosos. O objetivo deste Projeto é apresentar um Plano Estratégico para a empresa Alpha (nome fictício) relativo à implementação de um Programa de Embaixadores (Campus Crew Ambassador Program) nas Universidades portuguesas. Através deste Programa, pretende-se aumentar a brand awareness dos estudantes universitários relativamente a esta empresa e atrai-los para a mesma

Safety assessment of essential medicines for elderly people: a bibliographic survey

Certain medicines are considered potentially inappropriate (PIM) for elderly people as they increase the risk of adverse drug events (ADE) and because safer alternative therapies are available on the market. In this context, in order to identify the instruments that assess the quality of medical prescriptions for elderly and to determine which drugs are considered PIM, a bibliographic survey was conducted in PUBMED, LILACS and PAHO databases, in February and March/2010. The search strategy included the use of health descriptors and a manual search in the references cited by selected papers. During the period of data collection, 15 instruments were identified. In 2012, with the publication of the update of Beers criteria, this instrument was included in the study. We identified 163 PIM of 25 therapeutic classes, of which 125 (76.7%) are marketed in Brazil. Of these, 31 (24.8%) are essential medicines (RENAME 2012), of which 13 have safer therapeutic equivalents and 19 (15.2%) are over-the-counter drugs. Data suggest the need for inclusion of safer alternatives for the elderly in the national list of essential medicines and the pharmaceutical care for early detection of ADE in this age group, in order to contribute to the safe use of medicines.Determinados medicamentos são considerados potencialmente inapropriados (MPI) para idosos, por aumentarem o risco de ocorrência de eventos adversos a medicamentos (EAM) e por existirem alternativas terapêuticas mais seguras. Neste contexto, com o intuito de identificar os instrumentos que avaliam a qualidade das prescrições médicas para idosos e verificar quais medicamentos são considerados MPI, levantamento bibliográfico foi realizado nas bases de dados PUBMED, LILACS e PAHO em fevereiro e março de 2010. Para a seleção dos manuscritos utilizaram-se descritores em saúde e busca manual nas referências bibliográficas dos artigos identificados. No período da coleta de dados, foram identificados 15 instrumentos. Em 2012, com a publicação da atualização da lista de Beers, este instrumento foi incluído no estudo. Foram identificados 163 MPI de 25 classes terapêuticas, dos quais 125 (76,7%) são comercializados no Brasil. Destes, 31 (24,8%) são medicamentos essenciais (RENAME 2012), sendo que para 13 deles há equivalentes terapêuticos mais seguros e 19 (15,2%) são medicamentos isentos de prescrição. Os dados sugerem a necessidade de inclusão de medicamentos mais seguros para idosos na lista nacional de medicamentos essenciais e do monitoramento farmacoterapêutico para a detecção precoce de EAM nesta faixa etária para contribuir com o uso seguro de medicamentos

Relationship between birthweight and arterial elasticity in childhood

There is a considerable debate about the potential influence of fetal programming on cardiovascular diseases in adulthood. In the present prospective epidemiological cohort study, the relationship between birthweight and arterial elasticity in 472 children between 5 and 8 years of age was assessed. LAEI (large artery elasticity index), SAEI (small artery elasticity index) and BP (blood pressure) were assessed using the HDI/PulseWave CR-2000 CardioVascular Profiling System. Blood concentrations of glucose, total cholesterol and its fractions [LDL (low-density lipoprotein)-cholesterol and HDL (high-density lipoprotein)-cholesterol] and triacylglycerols (triglycerides) were determined by automated enzymatic methods. Insulin was assessed by a chemiluminescent method, insulin resistance by HOMA (homoeostasis model assessment) and CRP (C-reactive protein) by immunonephelometry. Two linear regression models were applied to investigate the relationship between the outcomes, LAEI and SAEI, and the following variables: birthweight, gestational age, glucose, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triacylglycerols, insulin, CRP, HOMA, age, gender, waist circumference, per capita income, SBP (systolic BP) and DBP (diastolic BP). LAEI was positively associated with birthweight (P=0.036), waist circumference (P<0.001) and age (P<0.001), and negatively associated with CRP (P=0.024) and SBP (P<0.001). SAEI was positively associated with birthweight (P=0.04), waist circumference (P=0.001) and age (P<0.001), and negatively associated with DBP (P<0.001). Arterial elasticity was decreased in apparently healthy children who had lower birthweights, indicating an earlier atherogenetic susceptibility to cardiovascular diseases in adolescence and adult life. Possible explanations for the results include changes in angiogenesis during critical phases of intrauterine life caused by periods of fetal growth inhibition and local haemodynamic anomaliesFAPESP n. 04/04109-

ETHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF MOTHER-PUP INTERACTIONS AND OTHER BEHAVIORAL REACTIONS IN RATS: EFFECTS OF MALNUTRITION AND TACTILE STIMULATION OF THE PUPS

Mother-pup interaction, as well as other behavioral reactions were studied during the lactation period in 24 litters of Wistar rats and their dams fed either a 16% (control - C; 12 litters) or a 6% (malnourished - M; 12 litters) protein diet. The diets were isocaloric. Throughout lactation there was a 36.4% weight loss of M dams and a 63% body weight deficit in the M pups when compared to control pups. During this period, half of the litters were exposed daily to additional tactile stimulation (CS or MS), while the other half were submitted to normal rearing conditions (CN or MN). The tactile stimulation of pups (handling) consisted of holding the animal in one hand and gently touching the dorsal part of the animal's body with the fingers for 3 min. A special camera and a time-lapse video were used to record litter behavior in their home cages. Starting at 6 p.m. and ending at 6 a.m., on days 3, 6, 12, 15, 18 and 21 of lactation, photos were taken at 4-s intervals. An increase in the frequency (154.88 ± 16.19) and duration (455.86 ± 18.05 min) of suckling was observed throughout the lactation period in all groups compared to birth day (frequency 24.88 ± 2.37 and duration 376.76 ± 21.01 min), but the frequency was higher in the C (84.96 ± 8.52) than in the M group (43.13 ± 4.37); however, the M group (470.2 ± 11.87 min) spent more time suckling as compared with the C group (393.67 ± 13.09 min). The M dams showed a decreased frequency of resting position throughout the lactation period (6.5 ± 2.48) compared to birth day (25.42 ± 7.74). Pups from the C group were more frequently observed separated (73.02 ± 4.38) and interacting (258.99 ± 20.61) more with their mothers than the M pups (separated 66.94 ± 5.5 and interacting 165.72 ± 12.05). Tactile stimulation did not interact with diet condition, showing that the kind of stimulation used in the present study did not lead to recovery from the changes induced by protein malnutrition. The changes in mother-pup interaction produced by protein malnutrition of both may represent retardation in neuromotor development and a higher dependence of the pups on their mothers. These changes may represent an important means of energy saving and heat maintenance in malnourished pups. Keywords: protein malnutrition, tactile stimulation, mother-pup interaction.

Assessment of the adherence to and costs of the prophylaxis protocol for venous thromboembolism

OBJECTIVES: Evaluate adherence to the therapeutic prophylaxis protocol for venous thromboembolism (VTE) as well as the costs of this practice. METHODS: A descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted at a State General Hospital in Brazil through reports of drug dispensions, prescriptions and risk stratification of patients. Adherence to the VTE prophylaxis protocol was monitored. The tests for VTE diagnosis measured the adherence to therapeutic prophylaxis treatment, and the purchase prices of the drugs went into the calculation of drug therapy costs. The level of adherence to prescriptions for VTE prophylaxis in the hospital was classified as ‘‘adherence’’, ‘‘non-adherence’’ and ‘‘justified non-adherence’’ when compared with the protocol. RESULTS: Protocol adherence was observed for 50 (30.9%) patients, and non-adherence was observed for 63 (38.9%) patients, generating an additional cost of $180.40/month. Justified non-adherence in 49 (30.2$514.71/month in savings due to a reduction in the number of daily administrations of unfractionated heparin while still providing an effective method for preventing VTE. Twenty-six patients stratified as having medium to high risk of VTE who did not receive prophylaxis were identified, generating $154.41 in savings. However, these data should be evaluated with caution since the risks and outcomes associated with not preventing VTE outweigh the economy achieved from not prescribing a drug when a patient needs it. The only case of VTE identified during the study period was related to justified non-adherence to the protocol. CONCLUSION: The protocol is based on scientific evidence that describes an effective therapy to prevent VTE. However, the protocol should be updated because the justifications for non-adherence are based on scientific evidence, and this justified non-adherence generates savings and yields effective disease prevention

EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF PROTEIN AND ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULATION ON THE BEHAVIOR OF YOUG RATS TESTED IN THE ELEVATED PLUS-MAZE

The interaction between the effects of different levels of protein malnutrition and environmental stimulation was investigated in young male rats in the elevated plus-maze (EPM). Litters (dam plus 6 male and 2 female pups) were fed a 16% (Control: C), 10% (Malnourished: M10) or 6% (Malnourished: M6) protein diet. Half of the litters were daily exposed to additional stimulation (CS, MS10 or MS6), while the other half was maintained in normal rearing conditions (CN, MN10 or MN6). The stimulation (handling) consisted of holding the rat in one hand and gently touching the dorsal part of the body with the fingers for3 min. On the 22nd day of life (weaning), two male pups from each group were tested in the plus-maze. Two male pups continued to receive the same diet their mothers, and other two were fed a non-purified lab chow diet until 35 days of age when they were tested in the plus-maze (LN, LS, LN10, LS10, LN6 and LS6 groups). Results showed that environmental simulation increased open arms exploration both at 22 and 35 days of age, indicating an anxiolytic effect of this procedure. Younger rats (22 days of age) explored significantly more the open arms of the maze as compared with older rats (35 days of age), indicating an increase in anxiety with age. M6 animals showed significantly higher percentages of open arm entries and less frequent attempts to enter open arms in the maze as compared with C and M10 animals. These results suggest that even a short period of protein deficiency can produce alterations in the emotional response of rats in the elevated plus-maze. In addition, the data demonstrated that protein deficiency more severe than 10% is necessary to produce behavior alterations in the EPM test. Keywords: Age, Anxiety, Environmental stimulation, Impulsiveness, Plus-maze test, Protein malnutrition levels.

CASE REPORT: CENTRAL PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY IN A CHILD WITH BLOCH-SULZBERGER SYNDROME.

Objective: To describe a case of a child with IncontinentiaPigmenti associated with precocious puberty. Case description: a 1 year 7 months old female babywas taken by her parents to a medical appointment because of an aggravation of skin spots with a latté color disseminated throughout the body, which appeared when the child was five months old. The mother also referred premature thelarche and premature pubarche since the child was three months old. Comments: Precocious puberty is defined as the development of secondary sexual characteristics before the age of eightin girls and nine in boys. The Bloch-Sulzberger syndrome, or Incontinentia Pigmenti, is a disorder linked to the X chromosome that affects the skin, eyes, teeth and may be associated with neurological deficits. As much as this specific syndrome involves multiple organs and systems, there was no association with an endocrine disorder.    

Ácidos Graxos Poli-insaturados Ômega-3: saúde cardiovascular e sustentabilidade ambiental

Os Ácidos Graxos Poli-insaturados Ômega-3 (n-3 PUFA) se referem a um conjunto de lipídios, incluindo os Ácidos Alfa-linolênico (ALA), Eicosapentaenóico (EPA) e Docoxahexaenóico (DHA). Estudos que tratam do papel do n-3 PUFA são abundantes e seu papel cardioprotetor está bem discutido na literatura, porém seus efeitos são mais evidentes na prevenção secundária, isto é, em populações com alguma alteração cardiovascular prévia. Apesar da ausência de fortes evidências em relação à prevenção primária, recomenda-se o consumo de peixe duas vezes por semana, além de outros alimentos fontes do ácido graxo, para pessoas sem doença cardiovascular diagnosticada. Equacionar as recomendações para a saúde e a possibilidade ambiental de atendê-las constitui-se em um grande desafio. As reservas de peixe têm sofrido rápido declínio nos últimos anos devido a seu caráter essencialmente extrativista, pois até mesmo a aquicultura envolve a utilização de pequenos peixes selvagens para a produção de ração. A utilização do óleo de microalgas, como fonte de n-3 PUFA para a aquicultura e para o consumo humano, pode ser uma alternativa, mas deve-se avaliar seu uso com responsabilidade para que haja preservação ambiental e garantia da segurança alimentar e nutricional