FACTORS INFLUENCING ORGANISATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS IN THE EDUCATIONAL SECTOR

Organisations in the educational sector are being influenced by several aspects such as political environment, deteriorating financial aid from the government, rising aspirations of first generation learners in higher education and so on. Along with this, it is also noteworthy to mention that the society is investing huge amount of human, financial and material resources in establishing and running institutions of higher learning. This makes it imperative to study the effectiveness of educational institutions which are non-profit organisations. The study therefore attempts to ascertain the factors influencing organisational effectiveness in the educational sector. The researcher has identified four variables that are expected to influence organisational effectiveness measured in terms of perceived gains from post-graduate education. The factors identified include organisational health, psychological wellbeing of students, satisfaction with quality of campus life and student engagement. The study has adopted the descriptive method of the correlational type. The sample comprised of 273 post graduate students of University of Mumbai selected randomly through stratified random sampling techniques. When analysed using multiple regression techniques, it was found that (9.28%, 8.32%, 18.34% and 23.42% of the variance in perceived gains from post-graduate education is contributed by organisational health, psychological well-being of students, satisfaction with quality of campus life and student engagement respectively. In all, 77.05% of the variance in perceived gains from post-graduate education is explained by the variables included in the study. Almost one fifth of the variance in the perceived gains from post-graduate education is contributed by organisational health and student engagement. The findings of the study suggest that any effort to enhance organisational effectiveness should focus on improving organisational health and student engagement.   Article visualizations

A comparative study of tranexamic acid and ethamsylate in menorrhagia

Background: Menorrhagia interferes with the woman’s physical, social, emotional, and/or material quality of life. Antifibrinolytic drugs are effective in decreasing excessive menstrual bleeding. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of tranexamic acid and ethamsylate on quality of life in women with menorrhagia.Methods: The 50 women with menorrhagia were randomised to receive either tranexamic acid or ethamsylate. Twenty five patients were allocated to receive tranexamic acid 500 mg six hourly, and 25 patients to receive ethamsylate 500 mg six hourly. Among the parameters measured by the MIQ were impairment in social activities, work performance, physical activities, productivity, hygienic condition, psychological condition. Health-related quality-of-life question scores (MIQ scores) at baseline and after treatment were calculated as mean for tranexamic acid group and ethamsylate group.Results: Tranexamic acid and ethamsylate treatment groups showed mean improvement in MIQ scores compared to baseline. However, the total mean score was higher in tranexamic acid group compared to ethamsylate group after three treatment cycles (21 Vs 17).Conclusions: Use of tranexamic acid and ethamsylate improved health-related quality of life in patients with menorrhagia. Tranexamic acid showed better improvement in health-related quality of life compared to ethamsylate in patients with menorrhagia

Stability of Clinical Chemistry and Hematological Analytes in Preserved Plasma and Blood Obtained from Wistar Rats

Blood samples obtained from experimental animals often need preservation due to several technical constraints. The present study was aimed to determine the effect of storage temperature and time on the stability of analytes in whole blood and plasma samples obtained from Wistar rats. Aspartate amino transferase, alkaline phosphatase, cholesterol, triglycerides, creatinine, urea, glucose, total protein, total bilirubin, phosphorous, sodium, potassium and chloride did not show statistically significant changes in plasma preserved a

Comparative evaluation of antihypertensive drugs in the management of pregnancy-induced hypertension

Background: Pregnancy-induced hypertension is associated with various adverse fetal and maternal outcomes. The use of anti-hypertensive drugs in pregnancy is controversial. We conducted a prospective study to evaluate the comparative effectiveness and safety of nifedipine, methyldopa and labetalol monotherapy in patients with pregnancy-induced hypertension.Methods: A total of 60 pregnant women with blood pressure of 140/90 mm Hg or more with ≥1+ proteinuria between 20 and 38 weeks of gestation were randomly allocated to receive nifedipine (n=20), methyldopa (n=20) or labetalol (n=20). Blood pressure was measured at 0, 6, 24, 48 and 72 h of initiation of antihypertensive drugs. Patients were also followed up for development of adverse drug effects during this period.Results: Antihypertensive treatment with methyldopa was associated with reduction in systolic blood pressure (SBP) by 50 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) by 30 mmHg at 72 h. For the same period treatment with nifedipine was associated with reduction in SBP by 54 mmHg and DBP by 30 mmHg. Treatment with labetalol was associated with reduction in SBP by 70 mmHg and DBP by 36 mmHg at 72 h.Conclusions: Labetalol was more effective than methyldopa and nifedipine in controlling blood pressure in patients with pregnancy-induced hypertension while methyldopa and nifedipine are equally effective in controlling blood pressure

Comparison of the efficacy and safety of norethisterone vs. combined oral contraceptive pills for the management of puberty menorrhagia

Background: The most common cause of puberty menorrhagia is immaturity of the hypothalamic pituitary ovarian axis. Treatment is directed towards stabilizing the endometrium and treating the hormonal alterations. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of norethisterone and combined oral contraceptive (COC) pills for the management of puberty menorrhagia.Methods: A total of 60 young girls from age of menarche to 19 years with menorrhagia were randomized to receive either norethisterone or COC pills. The end points included change from baseline in health-related quality-of-life parameters, estimation of blood loss and effect on hemoglobin level. Health-related quality-of-life question scores at baseline and after treatment were calculated as mean for norethisterone group and COC pills group.Results: Norethisterone and COC pills treatment groups showed mean improvement in Menorrhagia Impact Questionnaire (MIQ) scores compared to baseline. However, the total mean score was higher in norethisterone group compared to COC pills group after three treatment cycles (21 Vs 17). The treatment failure was less in norethisterone group compared to COC pills group.Conclusions: Use of norethisterone was more effective and better tolerated compared to combined oral contraceptive pills for the management of puberty menorrhagia