Challenges and Emerging Trends in Human Resource Management

The paradigm shift in managing the living assets of organizations has witnessed a revolution in the past three decades. Human-Resources (HR) professionals now strive for corroborating the decisive capabilities driving business excellence. This trend signals a transformation in the way HR contributes to organizational objectives. This instrumental change points out an integration of the new with the old. This paper traces the evolution and genesis of HR outsourcing and its variation overtime. Further it enumerates factors which compel organizations to opt for outsourcing the HR function, implications it has on facets of business. Lastly it illustrates successful HRO deals worldwide

ANTHROPOLOGY AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT-TOOL TO ATTAIN COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

The recent past has witnessed a trajectory in terms of growth of anthropology as a discipline along with its application in various fields. One of the most talked about fields of applied anthropology is anthropology in business or business anthropology. The world has recognised that business is not just an economic activity but an activity which has a human angle hence neo-classical principles have replaced the classical thought. More and more organizations are embracing research to understand the people side of business. For this, anthropologists are being hired to investigate vital processes such as organization policies, design, culture, leadership, consumer behavior, and so on. The present article discusses the concept and meaning of this newly-arrived discipline of anthropology, followed by its contribution to business in the present century. Further, it also elaborates the relevance of business anthropology, the practical issues faced in its implementation, and its emerging fields

THE RELEVANCE OF ANTHROPOLOGY IN MANAGEMENT EDUCATION IN INDIA

This paper explores the significance of anthropology in management education. It also aims to develop an insight into the benefits that the business would accrue by introducing anthropology to management education. Globalization has a multifaceted bearing on education—it endorses new tools and techniques in this area. But whether education can prepare citizens to face the new challenges will depend upon the quality of education. Business education in India is undergoing a profound paradigm shift to respond to the challenges arising out of the rapidly changing business environmental factors

Control of an Outbreak of Acinetobacter baumannii

Acinetobacter infection is increasing in hospitals and now it is considered as a global threat, as it can be easily transmitted and remain viable in the hospital environment for a long time due to its multidrug-resistant status, resistance to desiccation, and tendency to adhere to inanimate surfaces. Outbreaks caused by multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDRAB) are difficult to control and have substantial morbidity and mortality, especially in vulnerable host. Here we are describing an outbreak of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii in burn unit of a tertiary care hospital in India followed by its investigation and infection control measures taken to curtail the outbreak. Outbreak investigation and environmental sampling are the key factors which help in deciding the infection control strategies for control of outbreak. Implementation of contact precautions, hand hygiene, personnel protective equipment, environmental disinfection, isolation of patients, and training of health care workers are effective measures to control the outbreak of MDRAB in burn unit

The challenge of recruiting in primary care for a trial of telemonitoring in asthma : an observational study

Acknowledgments This study was funded by Asthma UK. HP is supported by a Primary Care Research Career Award from the Chief Scientist’s Office of the Scottish Government. The Primary Care Research Networks in Norfolk and Yarmouth, East Kent, North of England, and Essex and Hertfordshire identified and recruited practices. We thank the practices, practice nurses, and administrative staff for their active participation and the patients who gave their time to participate in the trial. Professor Amanda Lee was the trial statistician. We thank Dr Andrew Wilson and Neil Kendle for serving on the ITSC and Dr Brian McKinstry and Dr Chris Burton who offered advice as collaborators. ISRCTN number: NCT00512837. Contributorship: DR initiated the idea for the study and with HP led the development of the protocol, securing of funding, study administration, data analysis, interpretation of results, and writing of the paper. DP is a grant holder who contributed to development of the protocol, securing of funding, study administration, data analysis, interpretation of results, and writing of the paper. SM and SDM recruited practices and undertook the data collection. All authors had full access to all the data and were involved in interpretation of the data. SM wrote the initial draft of the paper, to which all the authors contributed. DR and HP are study guarantors.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Diagnostic suggestion and surgical consideration for Hirschsprung’s disease associated with high anorectal malformation

Object: The objective of this study were to highlight the finding of vasa recta (tortuous) on the colonic wall as a diagnostic clue for suspecting an associated Hirschsprung’s disease (HD) and to draw attention to the importance of preserving the aganglionic rectum plus a retrorectal pull through in these cases.Background: The association of HD with anorectal malformation (ARM) is both diagnostically and surgically challenging.Patients and methods: Records of cases with ARM treated over 15 years were examined. Among these, five children with an associated HD were analyzed with regard to their clinical, radiological, surgical, histopathological findings, and outcome. Relevant literature was also reviewed.Results: HD was present in 1.26% cases of ARM. All were men with high-type ARM. Two groups were identified. In group 1 (two patients), associated HD was suspected after completion of all stages of ARM repair. They reported prolonged postoperative constipation, abdominal distention, and enterocolitis. Moreover, they endured additional surgeries for HD. In group 2 (three patients), HD was suspected at the time of initial colostomy for ARM in two patients on visualizing tortuous (cork screw) vasa recta on the sigmoid colon surface in a region similar to the transition zone in HD. Biopsy from the site confirmed HD. In the third patient, these vessels were visualized on the colostomy loop at the time of laparoscopic pull through for ARM. Preservation of the aganglionic rectum (to function as a fecal reservoir) as well as a retrorectal pull through was done in both groups.Conclusion: Finding prominent corkscrew vessels on the colonic surface could serve as a clinical clue for the presence of HD in cases of ARM. Moreover, preserving the aganglionic rectum and performing a Duhamel pull through helps provide acceptable continence.Keywords: anorectal malformation, Hirschsprung’s disease, rectal reservoir, tortuous vasa rect

Survival among patients with lung cancer managed at a tertiary care center in North India

Though there has been advancement in the management of lung cancer, it is not well utilized due to its limited availability and high cost. This is a prospective observational study done at a tertiary care center from January 2014 to December 2022, involving patients with primary lung cancer. After tumor-node-metastasis staging and molecular testing, the patients received chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy in various combinations as per the prevailing National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines. 92 patients were enrolled in the study, with the mean age being 58.94±10.33 and 72 (78.26%) being males. 69 (75%) patients were either current or former smokers. 78 (84.78%) patients had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score of 0-2 while the remaining had an ECOG of 3-4. 80 (86.95%) patients had non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) [44 (47.83%) adenocarcinoma, 25 (27.17%) squamous cell carcinoma, and 11 (11.95%) NSCLC: not otherwise specified], while 12 (13.04%) patients had small cell lung cancer. One (1.08%) patient each presented in stage I and stage II, 31 (33.69%) patients presented in stage III, and 59 (64.13%) patients presented in stage IV. 44 patients with adenocarcinoma were subjected to mutational analysis, and an epidermal growth factor receptor mutation was found in 13 (29.5%) patients. None of the patients had ALK mutation, ROS-1 rearrangement, or BRAF mutation. PD-L1 expression was evaluated in 9 patients with NSCLC, and it was found in 6 (66.66%) patients. The overall mean survival was 12.7 months. The mean survival for patients with stages I, II, III, and IV was 70, 96, 8.1, and 12.7 months, respectively. Survival in stage IV was better than in stage III, as the eligible patients received targeted therapy and immunotherapy. Targeted therapy and immunotherapy have improved survival. Molecular analysis should be done whenever indicated, and eligible patients must be administered targeted therapy and immunotherapy