An econometric time-series analysis of Australian housing activity from a macroeconomic perspective

The significant fluctuations in housing activity over time can be regarded as "interesting" and "special". The persistence of such cyclical behaviour of housing activity through periods of different economic and demographic conditions has attracted significant research efforts to investigate the underlying influences and the implications for the economy as a whole. In this thesis, the factors which contribute to cyclical fluctuations in housing activity are examined using econometric time-series techniques. While the commonly used indicators of housing activity are stationary over the sample period investigated, most important economic and financial variables which significantly influence housing activity can be characterised as co-integrated of order (1, 1). A new procedure is therefore developed and utilised widely for examination of such systems which contain both co-integrated and stationary series. This procedure is an innovative way of analysing housing activity as the "error-correction" like processes generated from the co-integrated economic and financial variables form an important part of the system in explaining the cyclical fluctuations in housing activity. In this thesis, it is shown that the fluctuations in housing activity are related to the policy instruments used by the Government for stabilising the macroeconomy. In particular, housing activity is found to respond significantly to changes in short term interest rates and real income, or general economic activity, although the effects resulting from changes in the money supply and general price level are much less substantial. While the response of housing activity to a change in short term interest rates is prolonged, the effect of innovations in real income, or general economic conditions, on housing activity only persists for a much shorter period. In addition, policy on immigration is also an important element influencing the level of housing activity. However, over the short to medium terms, changes in economic and financial variables produce more significant effects on housing activity than that generated by net migration or increases in population. Interestingly, housing activity also feeds back on the level of short term interest rates, which suggest that housing activity may be an important determinant in the decision-making processes of the monetary authorities. In contrast to previous testing for Australia, housing activity is found to "Granger cause" general economic growth in a number of modelling exercises. These results consistently affirm that housing activity contains leading information for changes in general economic conditions and, therefore, can be used as a "leading indicator" of general economic activity

Evaluating User Satisfaction and Organisational Benefits of Electronic Medication Management System in an Australian Hospital

In this conceptual paper, we speculate on the possibility that a PhD by Artefact and Exegesis (A&E) may be legitimate in the Information Systems (IS) discipline. Research, as creative process and product with the intention of yielding new knowledge, takes many forms across the spectrum of academic disciplines. Other disciplines, particularly in the humanities’ fields of arts and design, have artefacts as a discrete part of their PhD product accompanied by an exegesis of one form or another. It may be that some research in the IS discipline lends itself to the A&E approach. This paper considers A&E PhDs in Humanities and how practice-based research is presented. We explore how A&E might apply to IS research, through comparison with the design science approach. We suggest tentative impacts on candidates, supervisors and examiners then conclude with the issues and open questions raised by our investigations

Disease costing methodology used in the Disease Costs and Impact Study 1993–94

Describes in detail the methodology used by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare to measure health services use and expenditure for specific diseases and disease groups in Australia in 1993-94. A companion report, Health System Costs of Diseases and Injury in Australia 1993-94, provides estimates of the health system costs for each disease and injury group and area of expenditure. Other reports will provide detailed estimates for specific National Health Priority Areas - cancer, cardiovascular disease, injury, mental health and diabetes

Health system costs of diseases and injury in Australia 1993-94 : an analysis of costs, service use and mortality for major disease and injury groups

Provides a systematic analysis of the health system use and costs associated with specific disease and injury groups in Australia in 1993-94. The estimates are presented in a consistent format and are derived using a methodology that ensures the results add across disease, age and sex groups to total Australian health expenditures for 1993-94

Statewide cross-sectional survey of emergency departments\u27 adoption and implementation of the Ohio opioid prescribing guidelines and opioid prescribing practices

Study objective To evaluate the implementation of the Ohio Emergency and Acute Care Facility Opioids and Other Controlled Substances Prescribing Guidelines and their perceived impact on local policies and practice. Methods The study design was a cross-sectional survey of emergency department (ED) medical directors, or appropriate person identified by the hospital, perception of the impact of the Ohio ED Opioid Prescribing Guidelines on their departments practice. All hospitals with an ED in Ohio were contacted throughout October and November 2016. Distribution followed Dillman’s Tailored Design Method, augmented with telephone recruitment. Hospital chief executive officers were contacted when necessary to encourage ED participation. Descriptive statistics were used to assess the impact of opioid prescribing policies on prescribing practices. Results A 92% response rate was obtained (150/163 EDs). In total, 112 (75%) of the respondents stated that their ED has an opioid prescribing policy, is adopting one or is implementing prescribing guidelines without a specific policy. Of these 112 EDs, 81 (72%) based their policy on the Ohio ED Opioid Prescribing Guidelines. The majority of respondents strongly agreed/agreed that the prescribing guidelines have increased the use of the prescription drug monitoring programme (86%) and have reduced inappropriate opioid prescribing (71%). Conclusion This study showed that the Ohio ED Opioid Prescribing Guidelines have been widely disseminated and that the majority of EDs in Ohio are using them to develop local policies. The majority of respondents believed that the Ohio opioid prescribing guidelines reduced inappropriate opioid prescribing. However, prescribing practices still varied greatly between EDs

Exploring disparities in acute myocardial infarction events between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians: roles of age, gender, geography and area-level disadvantage

We investigated disparities in rates of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in the 199 Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) in New South Wales, Australia. Using routinely collected and linked hospital and mortality data from 2002 to 2007, we developed multilevel Poisson regression models to estimate the relative rates of first AMI events in the study period accounting for area of residence. Rates of AMI in Aboriginal people were more than two times that in non-Aboriginal people, with the disparity greatest in more disadvantaged and remote areas. AMI rates in Aboriginal people varied significantly by SLA, as did the Aboriginal to non-Aboriginal rate ratio. We identified almost 30 priority areas for universal and targeted preventive interventions that had both high rates of AMI for Aboriginal people and large disparities in rates

A benchmarking scoping review of research output from hospital pharmacy departments in Australia

Aim: To benchmark annual research output from hospital pharmacy departments in Australian principal referral hospitals. Data sources: Embase, Medline, and Scopus. Study selection: All 29 principal referral hospitals listed by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare were searched using the institution field from 2018–2020. Articles were included if an author was affiliated with a hospital pharmacy department. Conference abstracts, letters, narrative reviews, opinions, commentaries, or editorials were excluded. Results: A total of 261 research articles were identified from 27 principal referral hospital pharmacy departments from 2018–2020. Median research output over 3 years was five (interquartile range, 3–9) articles. In terms of annual research, hospital pharmacy departments in the 50th and 90th percentile for total publication output published two and ten original research articles every year, respectively. Overall, 56% (n = 145) of the published studies were observational, 35% (n = 90) had a first author with a pharmacy department affiliation, 97% (n = 252) had at least one author with a university affiliation, and in 5% (n = 12) of the articles there was more than one hospital pharmacy department affiliation. Conclusion: On average, hospital pharmacy departments in Australian principal referral hospitals publish two original research articles every year. Nearly all of these articles are published in collaborations with universities

Attitudes, barriers and facilitators of hospital pharmacists conducting practice-based research: a systematic review

Introduction: Practice-based research is essential in enhancing medication knowledge, quality use of medicines, the scope of the pharmacy profession and improving patient outcomes. This systematic review aims to uncover the attitudes of hospital pharmacists towards practice-based research and their perceptions of the barriers and facilitators to undertaking practice-based research. Methods: A systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature databases from 1 January 2000 to 11 March 2021 was conducted. Peer-reviewed empirical studies exploring hospital pharmacists’ perceptions of – as well as barriers and facilitators to – practice-based research were included and a descriptive synthesis used to identify common themes. Results: Nine studies were included in this review. Barriers and facilitators across four broad themes were related to pharmacist capacity and capability, workplace environment, research resources, and research culture. Hospital pharmacists had a high interest in conducting research, but limited research experience. Common barriers identified were lack of time, workplace support, funding, research culture, and competing priorities. Having a post-graduate qualification and a positive attitude towards research facilitated research participation. Departmental support, designated research time and creation of research networks and forums were seen as facilitators for practice-based research. Conclusion: Hospital pharmacists recognise the importance of practice-based research in improving knowledge, patient care and advancing pharmacy practice. However, large variation has been reported for their confidence and experience in practice-based research. Building research capacity and capability by supporting post-graduate research qualification, providing designated time and creating research networks may strengthen the research culture amongst hospital pharmacists