Towards a framework to study influence and accounting use.

The autonomous regions of Spain have responsibility for healthcare. The Galician Health Service aims to achieve a higher level of health for Galicians with an appropriate primary healthcare system. The law requires healthcare to be promoted within a system of participative management directed by an upper level of management. The healthcare system is changing, and the upper level managers are introducing new systems to improve the provision and administration of care. These changes will include the provision of accounting data in the normal course of managing. This paper is before a study of the changes. The paper provides the background to constructing a Framework and then constructs a Framework for our empirical work. It uses the constructs of information and influence with markers of the information areas and styles of influence in the form of an Information–Influence Matrix (Purdy, 1993b). It also uses personal construction (Kelly, 1955) to help create a dynamic approach to change and the use of accounting information. It finally provides a framework of our anticipations of what might happen to a Health Centre Manager and an Upper Manager.

Extending influence and accounting use—developing the Frameworks to incorporate Galician legal matters about the proposed healthcare changes with managers and organizations for empirical study.

The previous paper provided the general approach to Frameworks of research and research methods to study accounting changes in Galician healthcare [Purdy DE, Gago S. Towards a framework to study influence and accounting use. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 2003;14:663–78]. Consideration of the Galician legal and institutional materials provided the details and indicated the need for further analysis. This paper analyses Galician materials and the Spanish notion of retos, considers autonomy in the context of influence and changing information provision. Consequently, the Information–Influence Matrix is revised as are those anticipated for a Financial Manager and a Health Centre Manager. Further Frameworks now consider the organization and institution effects. Work elsewhere has indicated that the promotion of more involvement by employees and the provision of more information to employees has been accompanied by strong narratives favouring such changes. Generally such change has been more favourable for managers than non-management employees.Information; Influence; Autonomy; Managers; Galician health centre Management; Personal construct psychology; Information–influence matrix; rganizational change; Accounting data;

Studying influence and accounting use—empirical evidence about individual managers and organizations with changes in Galician healthcare.

Legislation outlined proposed changes in Galician Health Centres. This allowed us to set down the theory about personal and organizational Information–Influence Matrices and then Frameworks of Issues for the interactions between an individual Financial Manager and a Health Centre Co-ordinator, as well as the proposed organizational changes into a new system [Purdy DE, Gago S. Extending influence and accounting use: developing the frameworks to incorporate Galician legal matters about the proposed healthcare changes with managers and organizations for empirical study. Critical Perspectives on Accounting; in press]. Evidence from a longitudinal study covering January 1997 and December 2001, indicated the suitability of these types of Matrices and Frameworks of Issues to analyse conversational data. Results agreed with anticipations at a personal level—wholly for a co-ordinator and partly for the Financial Manager. Differences between the findings and our anticipated Financial Manager's framework are straightforward and we have amended our Framework accordingly. The organization level has followed our anticipations though only 15% of Health Centres had continued with the new system, 85% remained working with the old system. Galician law contained aspirations for changing healthcare with autonomous Health Centres. Spanish health policies and budget laws have inhibited moves to change, as well as the actions of the professionals involved.Information and influence; Consultation and participation; Autonomy; Managers; Galician Health Centre Management; Personal construct psychology; Information–influence matrix; Organizational change; Accounting data;

Public sector managers handling accounting data : a UK framework validated in Spain.

A group of Spanish researchers wanted to understand how public sector managers were affected by the accounting systems that provide their data and how such managers used the data at a time when Government policy sought to reduce cash expenditures. The group, who interviewed the managers of seven Galician Business Schools, found that the data was not used but further explanations were difficult. It turned to an Original Framework of 8 UK Issues for public sector managers handling data (Purdy, 1993a). This paper takes the Original Framework, discusses its bases, considers areas for research then introduces the concept of a Continuum of learning related to handling data. Successive amendments to the Framework are made until an Extended Framework of 19 Spanish Issues is produced. These Frameworks are discussed with the interview material. The findings show that the Issues were generally well covered by managers and in the direction anticipated by the Extended Framework indicating some relevance to this Framework. The independently collected material had a close correspondence with the Original Framework and was sufficient for that Framework to become a general research instrument for examining the handling of data by its recipientsPsychology of accounting; Public finance; Accounting systems; Financial management; United Kingdom; Spain; Public sector control; Budget control versus cash limit control; Framework of issues for handling data;

ThermoPhyl : a software tool for selecting phylogenetically optimized conventional and quantitative-PCR taxon-targeted assays for use with complex samples

The ability to specifically and sensitively target genotypes of interest is critical for the success of many PCR-based analyses of environmental or clinical samples that contain multiple templates.Next-generation sequence data clearly show that such samples can harbour hundreds to thousands of operational taxonomic units; a richness which precludes the manual evaluation of candidate assay specificity and sensitivity using multiple sequence alignments. To solve this problem we have developed and validated a free software tool which automates the identification of PCR assays targeting specific genotypes in complex samples. ThermoPhyl uses user-defined target and non-target sequence databases to assess the phylogenetic sensitivity and specificity of thermodynamically optimised candidate assays derived from primer design software packages. ThermoPhyl takes its name from its central premise of testing Thermodynamically optimal assays for Phylogenetic specificity and sensitivity and can be used for two primer (traditional PCR) or two primers with an internal probe (e.g. TaqMan® qPCR) applications and potentially for oligonucleotide probes.Here we describe the use of ThermoPhyl for traditional PCR and qPCR assays. PCR assays selected using ThermoPhyl were validated using 454 pyrosequencing of a traditional specific PCR assay and with a set of four genotype-specific qPCR assays applied to estuarine sediment samples

Recovery and biogeography of Pseudomonas and Burkholderia species from the human home.

15 households in the Louisville Metro area were sampled, 7 had a patient with cystic fibrosis (CF), and 8 did not. Houses were sampled between 3 and 8 times each, and samples were collected from 123 different sites within and around the homes. These sites were categorized into the variable environment type based on ecological similarity of sites. Between 75 and 168 samples were collected from each home per visit. Recovery was examined for biogeographical patterns by environment type and season at multiple taxonomic levels. Approximately 10% of samples taken yielded Pseudomonas, and of these 61% were P. putida group, 23% P. fluorescens group, and 15% P. aeruginosa group. Environment type and season influenced patterns of Pseudomonas species recovery at all taxonomic levels (genus, species groups, and species), and house of recovery influenced recovery for all species groups but P. aeruginosa. Soils and drains were the environment types with the highest recovery. Soils had the highest recovery rates for P. fluorescens group and P. putida group, while drains had the highest recovery rates for P. aeruginosa group. This indicates that household Pseudomonas distribution is influenced by dispersal limitation as well as adaption to the environment. Recovery from the opportunistic pathogen, P. aeruginosa, was examined in greater detail with the aim of determining hotspots of recovery in the home. Drains were identified as hotspots for P. aeruginosa recovery were identified and no differences in recovery from drains were found in houses with CF patients compared to those without CF patients. No P. aeruginosa was recovered from animals, and only a single isolate was recovered from each soils and equipment used to treat CF. Indicating that P. aeruginosa is a drain specialist regardless of patient presence. The human home was investigated as a potential source of Burkholderia spp. by looking at recovery from various types of environments. Overall, the recovery rate of Burkholderia sp. was very low (0.22%). Isolates that were recovered were primarily from soil environments and drains. Isolates evenly clustered within two phylogenetic clades: the plant-associated beneficial environmental group described by Suárez-Moreno et al. (2012) and the B. cepacia complex

Taking Out TB–Lysosomal Trafficking and Mycobactericidal Ubiquitin-Derived Peptides

Tuberculosis remains a significant global health concern. The hallmark of Mycobacterium tuberculosis pathogenicity is its ability to infect resting macrophages and establish an intracellular niche. Activated and autophagic macrophages control mycobacterial infections through bactericidal mechanisms ranging from reactive oxygen and nitrogen intermediates to the delivery of the bacterium to the acidified, hydrolytically active lysosome. The mycobactericidal activity of the lysosome is due in part to the action of ubiquitin-derived peptides (Ub-peptides). In this review we discuss the trafficking events that result in delivery M. tuberculosis to the lysosome, the source and lysosomal generation of Ub-peptides and their role in macrophage control of M. tuberculosis infection

A study of several factors incident to the absorption of choline from the small intestine of the albino rat

The substance choline, one of the quaternary nitrogen bases, has been the subject of a number of reviews and investigations. It has been described as a cholinergic agent, an inotropic agent, a vitamin, and perhaps in other ways. In spite of the interest shown in its action and uses, there is as yet very little information available as to the mechanism by which it is absorbed by the intestinal mucosa. The studies referred to thus far leave the field open for additional investigation. No mention was found in the literature of studies on selective areas of absorption of choline in the small intestine, or whether enzyme inhibitors might produce an effect on rate of absorption. In view of the possibility that active transport, and thus enzyme activity, might be involved in choline absorption, it is conceivable that rate of choline absorption might be altered by such enzyme inhibitors as phlorizin and 2, 4-dinitrophenol. Selective areas of choline absorption, and the effects of several enzyme inhibitors were, then, selected as the areas for investigation in the study described here