A method to measure flag performance for the shipping industry

The subject of measuring the performance of registries has been a topic of policy discussions in recent years on the regional level due to the recast of the European Union (EU) port state control (PSC) directive which introduces incentives for flags which perform better. Since the current method used in the EU region entails some shortcomings, it has therefore been the subject of substantial scrutiny. Furthermore, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) developed a set of performance indicators which however lacks the ability to measure compliance as set out in one of its strategic directions towards fostering global compliance. In this article, we develop and test a methodology to measure flag state performance which can be applied to the regional or global level and to other areas of legislative interest (e.g. recognized organizations, Document of Compliance Companies). Our proposed methodology overcomes some of the shortcomings of the present method and presents a more refined, less biased approach of measuring performance. To demonstrate its usefulness, we apply it to a sample of 207,821 observations for a 3 year time frame and compare it to the best know current method in the industry.

Reduction of an Economy’s Raw Material Dependence and the Human Capital of a Country

This paper evaluates the raw material dependence of two export-oriented oil and gas extracting countries. We find evidence of presence of the Dutch disease in both countries and of the resource curse in Russia. Reduction of volumes of crude oil and natural gas production and exports, compensated by the growth of value added in other kinds of economic activity, suggests that Norway is gradually overcoming the Dutch disease by means of expanded reproduction of human capital. On the other hand, extraction of hydrocarbons may remain a driver of the Russian economic growth

Non-iterative Rauscher method for 1-DOF system : a new approach to studying non-autonomous system via equivalent autonomous one

© 2017, Springer Science+Business Media B.V. Rauscher method becomes the matter of interest because in combination with the method of nonlinear normal vibration modes it allows to calculate steady forced vibrations in the system with multiple degrees of freedom (DOF) via reduction in the number of DOFs. However, modern realizations of that approach have drawbacks such as iterative nature and the need to have initial approximation for the solution. The primary principle of Rauscher method is in obtaining periodic solutions of a non-autonomous system via studying some equivalent autonomous one. In the paper, a new non-iterative variant of Rauscher method is considered. In its current statement, the method can be used in analysis of forced harmonic oscillations in a nonlinear system with one degree of freedom. The primary goals of the study were to find out what kind of equivalent autonomous systems could be built for a given non-autonomous one and how they can be used for the construction of periodic solutions and/or periodic phase plane orbits of the initial system. It is shown that three different types of equivalent autonomous dynamical systems can be built for a given 1-DOF non-autonomous one. The system of 1st type is a fourth-order dynamical system. Technically it can be considered as a 2-DOF system where additional “DOF” is explicitly “responsible” for forced oscillations. The system of 2nd type is a third-order dynamical system. Its periodic orbits are exactly the same as in the initial system. Using the invariant manifold of the system of 1st type, the system of 2nd type can be reduced to the form W(x, x′) = 0 (which is called here the equivalent system of the 3rd type). It is important that the function W(x, x′) can be built a priori. Once W(x, x′) is found: (i) one can obtain different periodical orbits corresponding to forced oscillations in the initial system; (ii) one can estimate amplitudes of vibrations for these regimes; (iii) one can track bifurcations of periodical regimes of the initial system with respect to change in amplitude of external excitation f. As shown in the paper, periodical orbits of the initial non-autonomous system can be obtained via two different approaches: (i) as set of points on phase plane satisfying the condition W(x, x′) = 0 ; (ii) via the application of harmonic balance method to the equivalent system of 1st type using system’s energy level as a continuation parameter. This approach has advantage over application of harmonic balance method to initial system because the latter requires good initial guess for expansion coefficients, while the new approach does not and always starts from zero initial guess

Relating ownership type to the organizational behaviour, role orientation and autonomy of community pharmacy managers in Canada

Community pharmacists are unique amongst professionals as they practice their profession in a commercial environment. This environment, where the dichotomy between the professional and business aspects of community pharmacy practice intersect, can place the professional objectives of pharmacy at odds with the business objectives. At the same time, ownership of community pharmacies is transitioning from pharmacist-owned and -operated establishments, to corporate-owned and -operated.The objective of this study was to investigate whether ownership type influences the pharmacists’, or in this case the pharmacy managers’, organizational behaviour, role orientation and professional autonomy. Specifically, exploring whether ownership type (independent, franchise, corporate) impacts the professional, business and environmental (organizational) aspects of community pharmacy practice.This study employed both quantitative and qualitative research methods. A cross-Canada, self-administered postal survey of community pharmacy managers was conducted in the spring of 2007. Contact information was obtained from individual provincial regulatory bodies across Canada and a stratified, random sample of community pharmacy managers was compiled. Items centred on professional and employer authority, manager autonomy, level of managerial control, orientation to professional and business aspects of practice and the manager role, affinity to professional and business characteristics of community pharmacy practice, and innovation. The survey was followed by semi-structured, in-depth telephone interviews with select self identified respondents from the survey portion of the study.The random, stratified sample consisted of 2,000 community pharmacy managers. Of the 2,000 questionnaires mailed out, 39 were returned as undeliverable. A total of 646 responses were received, for a response rate of 32.9 percent (646/1,961); while the response rate may not be ideal, the sample size was purposely made larger to account for the possibility of a low response rate. Seven interviews were conducted following the survey.Ontario, as the largest province, had the most responses with 289 (44.7%), and the majority of respondents were male (393, 60.8%). The greater part of respondents indicated their sole degree was their Bachelor of Pharmacy practice degree (499, 77.2%). A larger majority of respondents were either the pharmacy manager (398, 61.6%) or owner (215, 33.3%). Just under half of respondents practiced in independent pharmacies (44.6%), while 35.4 percent practiced in corporate pharmacies and 18.4 percent practiced in franchise pharmacies.As a whole, respondents were more likely to have access to information required for making clinical rather than business decisions. One quarter (24.4%) of respondents were never or rarely willing to go against company policies to carry out their professional duties, while one third (33.4%) were often or always willing to do so. Less than one-fifth (17.4%) of respondents had to follow policies(professional and business) developed by non-professionals, while 42.6 percent had to follow policies only with regard to business practices. The majority (89.5%) agreed that it is possible to be both a good professional and a successful businessperson.Fifteen distinct constructs emerged regarding (1) professional and (2) employer authority, (3) manager autonomy, (4) decision-making, (5) managerial control, (6) professional characteristics, orientation to (7) professional and (8) business aspects of the manager role, affinity to (9) professional and (10) business characteristics of community pharmacy practice, (11) connection to the employer,(12) role conflict, (13) innovation, (14) bureaucracy and (15) manager requests. The main independent variable was ownership structure: independent, franchise, or corporate. In analyzing the independent variable by the above constructs, significant differences (p < 0.05) arose for all constructs except for three related to the professional nature of practice: professional practice standards, professional orientation and professional affinity. Independent and franchise respondents were more likely to agree that the employer should influence practice standards than corporate respondents (p < 0.001). When exploring the level of autonomy respondents had in their pharmacy, significant differences arose among all three respondent types (p < 0.001); respondents in independent pharmacies felt they had the highest level of autonomy followed by franchise respondents and then corporate respondents, with more than one standard deviation difference between independent and corporate respondents.Significant differences also emerged among the three respondent types with regard to the amount of control the respondent had in their pharmacy (p < 0.001); independent respondents felt they had the most control followed by franchise respondents and then corporate respondents, with almost one standard deviation difference between independent and corporate respondents. With regard to business orientation and affinity to business related aspects of practice, independent and franchise respondents were significantly (p < 0.001) more likely to place higher importance on such activities than corporate respondents. Results of the interview portion of the study were used to bring a greater understanding to the survey portion of the research. There were a total of seven interviews conducted, with each interview lasting between 30 and 90 minutes in length. A total of nine themes emerged from the interviews: (1) autonomy, (2) behaviour, (3) environment, (4) future, (5) human resources, (6) image, (7) incentives, (8) professional standards and (9) role as manager.Finding of this study suggest that regardless of ownership structure, respondents emerge as professionally orientated and focused. Independent respondents appear to have more autonomy, control and decision-making capabilities than corporate respondents. Despite being professionally orientated and focused, corporate respondents appear cognizant of the restrictions placed on pharmacy practice in their pharmacy. On top of ownership structure, the dependent variables of age, gender, geographic region and years with employer appear to play a role in answers provided by community pharmacy managers.As ownership of community pharmacy continues to transition from pharmacist controlled to corporate-owned, managers, owners and the profession must acknowledge the professional implications that may result. While this study adds to the community pharmacy practice literature, there is recognition that additional research is necessary pertaining to the dynamic nature and culture of community pharmacy practice

Construction of Nonlinear Normal Modes by Shaw-Pierre via Schur Decomposition

In the paper the simplification of construction of nonlinear normal vibration modes by Shaw-Pierre in power series form is considered. The simplification can be obtained via change of variables in the equations o f motion of dynamical system under consideration. This change of variables is constructed by means of so-called ordered Schur matrix decomposition. As the result of the transformation there is no need in solving nonlinear algebraic equations in order to evaluate coefficients of nonlinear normal mode

Non-Iterative Rauscher Method for 1-DOF System: a New Approach to Studying Non-Autonomous System via Equivalent Autonomous One

In the paper a new non-iterative variant of Rauscher method is considered. In its current statement the method can be used in analysis of forced harmonic oscillations in 1-DOF nonlinear system. It is shown that three different types o f equivalent authonomous dynamical systems can be built for a given 1-DOF non-autonomous one. Two of them (1st and 2nd type) have wider set of solutions than that of the initial system. These solutions correspond to various values of amplitude and phase of external excitation. Solutions of the equivalent system of 3rd type are exclusively periodic ones. Based on the equivalent system of 3rd type such a function W(x,x') can be constructed that its level curves correspond to periodic orbits of the initial non-autonomous system. This function can be built a priori via computation of the invariant manifold of the equivalent system of 1st type. Using the same approach the Rauscher expansions cos(Qt)=C(x,x'), sin(Qt)=S(x,x') can also be constructed. It is also shown that equivalent systems can be investigated by means of harmonic balance method which allows construction o f W(x,x'), C(x,x') andS(x,x') in semi-analytical manner

A method to measure flag performance for the shipping industry

The subject of measuring the performance of registries has been a topic of policy discussions in recent years on the regional level due to the recast of the European Union (EU) port state control (PSC) directive which introduces incentives for flags which perform better. Since the current method used in the EU region entails some shortcomings, it has therefore been the subject of substantial scrutiny. Furthermore, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) developed a set of performance indicators which however lacks the ability to measure compliance as set out in one of its strategic directions towards fostering global compliance. In this article, we develop and test a methodology to measure flag state performance which can be applied to the regional or global level and to other areas of legislative interest (e.g. recognized organizations, Document of Compliance Companies). Our proposed methodology overcomes some of the shortcomings of the present method and presents a more refined, less biased approach of measuring performance. To demonstrate its usefulness, we apply it to a sample of 207,821 observations for a 3 year time frame and compare it to the best know current method in the industry

Pharmacists' experience with the exception drug status (EDS) program in Saskatchewan

In 1999, Saskatchewan Health sanctioned licensed pharmacists in the province to initiate Exception Drug Status (EDS), also referred to as prior approval, requests on behalf of their patients. The objectives of this study were to obtain pharmacists’ opinions about the benefits of the EDS program to stakeholders, and to identify factors associated with pharmacists initiating a request.In the fall of 2004, a census of community-pharmacy managers in Saskatchewan was conducted using a postal questionnaire, consisting of an introductory letter, two survey mailings and one reminder card. The questionnaire consisted primarily of seven-point Likert scale questions, and was analyzed using descriptive statistics and frequencies, followed by non-parametric analysis using Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests; post-hoc analysis was carried out using the Bonferroni test.A response rate of 82.6% was achieved. Those living in Saskatoon or Regina made up 39% of respondents, with another 39% located in centres of less than 5,000 people.A majority of respondents (63%) agreed or strongly agreed the EDS program benefited patients and the Drug Plan (64%). Only 15%, 37% and 39% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed EDS benefits pharmacists, physicians and the health care system respectively.Factors that were important or very important to pharmacists in deciding whether they would initiate an EDS request on behalf of their patient were: the ability of the pharmacist to obtain the required information to initiate the EDS request (77%); their ability to contact the prescribing physician (70%); and patient centred concerns such as the ability to pay (74%) or the patient had exceeded their deductible (66%). However, time (39%) was not as important relative to other factors in whether the pharmacist would apply for EDS on behalf of their patient.The majority of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that changing the policy in 1999 was beneficial to patient care (71%), while it also contributed substantially to their administrative workload (87%). The results of this study indicate community pharmacy managers in Saskatchewan acknowledge that the Exception Drug Status process is beneficial for their patients. While pharmacists were supportive of the benefits of an EDS program, their apprehensions towards the program lie in the administrative processes, particularly in obtaining the required information, from physicians, to submit a claim. There is also concern with the methods pharmacists must use to apply for EDS, which can be burdensome and prolong the administrative process.To enhance pharmacists’ support for the program it may be necessary to develop strategies designed to reduce the administrative workload associated with the program, and to streamline the efficient communication of required information between the prescriber and pharmacist. Alternatively, financial compensation to pharmacists for their expertise and efforts might be considered; although this would not address the workload and communication concerns of pharmacists, it does provide recognition for their professional role in securing appropriate drug therapy for their patients