Impact of Boards Gender Diversity on Firms Profitability: Evidence from Banking Sector of Pakistan

Gender diversity within senior management teams has become an increasingly topical issue. Good corporate decision-making requires diversity of thoughts, which comes from diverse people who have different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. Women hold just a small number of corporate board seats. The importance of gender diversification in the context of Pakistan is at its initial stage. Therefore this paper attempts to find out the relationship between the Board’s gender diversity and the firm’s performance particularly in the banking sector of Pakistan. Firm’s performance is measured by Return on Assets (ROA). Our sample size comprises of 6 banks and panel studies are conducted for the period from 2008 till 2012. Analysis is done through descriptive statistics, Correlation and Regression Analysis. Findings of the research show that number of women on board has a significant impact on firm’s performance while percentage of women on board and presence of female CEO has no significant impact on firm’s performance. Keywords - Corporate Governance, Gender Diversity, Women on Board Number, Women on Board percentage, Female CEO, Firm’s performance

Effect of an Artificial Sweetener on Rat’s Pancreas and Body Weight

Objective: To observe the effects of an artificial sweetener on rat’s pancreas and body weight.Material and Methods: This Laboratory based randomized control trial was carried out at Anatomy department, Army Medical College Rawalpindi, in collaboration with NIH, Islamabad, from March to May 2014. Forty male and female Sprauge dawley rats were used in the experiment. Ten males and 10 females served as control group C and 10 males and 10 female served as an experimental group E (n = 20 animals in each group). The rats were randomly allocated by using a random selection table. Control group C was given normal diet for two months whereas experimental group E was provided artificial sweetener (sodium cyclamate) 60mg/kg/day through oral gavage tube for two months. Animals were weighed before and at the end of experiment. Pancreas were dissected out, examined and weighed. Histological sections of pancreas were studied under light microscope. Fatty infiltration was calculated in three slides per specimen. Results were analyzed on SPSS version 20.Results: The pancreas of rats showed fatty infiltration and weight of animals were significantly higher in experimental group.Conclusion: Artificial sweetener brings significant fatty infiltrations in rat’s pancreas and also induces weight gain in animals

The Impact of Social Media on The Success of Crowdfunding in Developing Countries

The use of online communities to garner monetary support for charitable organisations, cultural endeavours, innovative products, and business ideas is quickly becoming more widespread. However, empirical research on the main dynamics of crowdfunding is limited. To increase the number of funds for crowdfunding campaigns, it is crucial to promote and publicise them on social media platforms. This study investigates the impact of communication and connectivity on crowdfunding success. Despite the recent study that has been conducted on crowdfunding, there is still a knowledge vacuum on the aspects that contribute to the success of crowdfunding models. The research framework that was built as part of this study offers an in-depth analysis of the donation-based crowdfunding model as well as the aspects that contribute to its success. This study also provides guidance for fundraisers and policymakers to consider success factors when creating their funding comparing

The Perceptions of Medical Students Regarding Professionalism, a qualitative study

Introduction: The elements of humanity and understanding the social values is significantly important for the health care workers to ensure positive health outcomes and patient’s safety, as care and empathy during the treatments are provided innately according to the standards, preferences and values of the individual.  Aim: Our goal is to prepare finest quality physicians who will serve as role models for future medical practitioners. The aim of this study is to find out student’s perception regarding professionalism in order to design curricular contents and matching instructional strategies aiming at enhancement of professionalism, understanding, practice and behavioral change.  Method: The study has been conducted at a private medical college in Islamabad after taking ethical approval. In order to collect data, a qualitative cross-sectional study design had been used. Focus group interview was conducted on semi structured questions. Data was recorded, transcribed, themes were extracted and analyzed by manual thematic analysis.  Results: the study identified fundamental themes regarding professionalism. Students had fair knowledge regarding professionalism but lack deep understanding. It was suggested to practice role modelling in order to inculcate professionalism among medical students.  Conclusion: The findings of the study indicated that the professionalism is the core of medical education and necessary for adequate practice therefore, we cannot rely on hidden curriculum for development of professional identity. The study suggests dire requirement for incorporation of study of professionalism and it applications in medical curriculum. Key words: Perceptions, Professionalism, Medical students

Comparative study on calcium, magnesium and cobalt in diabetic and non diabetic patients (males) in Punjab, Pakistan

Minerals are very important because of their important role in the maintenance of human health. Our study was aimed at assessing and comparing the levels of Ca, Mg and Co in the blood samples of diabetic and non diabetic persons (males) of five age groups between one and 75 years. For this purpose, fasting blood samples of diabetic and non diabetic males of selected age groups were collected. The blood samples were centrifuged to get serum. The mineral elements in the serum were analyzed by using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results depicted that the diabetic patients had higher mean concentration of Ca (141.47 ppm), Mg (18 ppm) and Co (0.057 ppm) while non diabetic persons had higher mean concentration of Ca (201.33 ppm), Mg (36.15 ppm) and Co (0.047 ppm). Statistical analysis was done by applying Student’s T-test. It can be concluded from the study that the diabetic patients of all five age groups are deficient of Ca, Mg, whereas the concentration of Co is higher in diabetic patients. In the further study physiological parameters along with other inorganic cofactors are being taken into consideration.Key words: Diabetes mellitus, blood serum, Ca, Mg, Co

STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION ABOUT THE USE OF SMART PHONE TECHNOLOGY FOR LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Smartphones have become the most influential technology in this century across the world and this technology effecting extremely on youth. The aim of this survey based quantitative study is to identify the students’ views on the usage of smartphones for learning activities. For this study, sample is consisted upon 20 students was randomly taken from the Department of English University of Okara. The data were collected with the help of 5-point Likert scale questionnaire; they were seized objectively into the Micro-soft Excel 2013 and were analyzed descriptively. The results of this study presented that learners were found comfortable with the usage of smartphone for learning purposes. Most of the students enjoy their learning activities on smartphones. According to them usage of smartphone for education has qualified them to advance additional skills and practices outside the classroom. Most of the students agree that Smartphone enabled them to practice social media stage for class actions. Students were found psychologically and physically comfortable and active during learning activity on smartphone. This study provided the evidence that usage of smartphone helped them in their learning activities and effect positively on their learning progress

Role of Career Counselling in Medical Profession: Perceptions of Medical Students

Objective: To determine the perception of medical students regarding the role of career counselling in medical profession. Methodology: It was a cross sectional study done between April and October 2023, where140 medical students from Central Park Medical College, Lahore were enrolled via convenience sampling. After receiving formal IRB approval, data was collected via self-designed google forms and WhatsApp groups from MBBS students in their first to final academic year who volunteered to participate after piloting with Cronbach Alpha score of 0.81. After collecting data, SPSS software version 26 was utilized for analysis. The outcomes were presented as frequency tables and bar graphs. Results: A total of 140 responses were collected with the average age of the respondents being 21+1.7SD years. About 59 (42.1%) of the students who responded were from 2nd year MBBS, 38 (27.1%) were from 4th year MBBS, 26 (19%) were from 1st year MBBS, 09 (6%) were from 5th year MBBS and remaining 08 (6%) were from 3rd year MBBS. About 60 (42.9%),52 (37.1%), 133 (95%) and 131 (93.6%)of the students said that career counselling helped identify their capabilities. About 130 (93 %), 115 (82 %), and 113(81%) gave positive responses when asked about the impact on gaining perspective, developing strategies, and managing conflicts. There was a significant relationship between the role of career counselling in identifying opportunities and building the CV 109(95%) (p=0.01), understanding interest59(99%) capabilities49(94%) (p=0.00), broadening one's perspective 126(95%) (0.00), adopting the right strategies 126(97%) (0.00), and resolving conflicts 108(95%) (0.00). Conclusion: Career counselling should be conducted in the early years of medical professional career, so that students can identify their areas of interest in order to choose the appropriate specialization in the future

Dengue viral infection deteriorates vitamin D, K, thrombopoietin, and angiotensinogen levels in humans

Dengue fever is the most significant arthropod-transmitted viral disease in terms of mortality and morbidity, affecting at least 50 million people around the world. It is commonly recognized as “breakbone” fever as it is mostly associated with severe muscle and joint pain. The objective of the study was to evaluate and assess the levels of selected vitamins and hormones in serum of dengue patients from Faisalabad, Pakistan. Estimation of serum levels of vitamins D 3 and K was carried out through spectrophotometer, while concentration of serum hormones, angiotensinogen and thrombopoietin, was determined through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit method. Hematological blood parameters were also investigated. Hematological parameters significantly ( P   0.05). Among the tested hormones, angiotensinogen level was found significantly ( P   0.05) higher compared to control group. In conclusion, the results of the current study demonstrated the significance of tested vitamins and hormones along with blood parameters in monitoring the dengue infected patients

Post-Covid-19 Pandemic IT Project Management Skills and Challenges

Since December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed social, financial, and work life. The novel coronavirus has caused problems in all business sectors, including Information Technology(IT). Many Projects have been stopped or delayed due to the impact of this pandemic. Most of the companies recognized the importance of IT to achieve competitive advantage and to survive. Companies are investing a lot of money in IT projects. More than 60% of IT project fail. Lack of professional IT project management is one of the main reasons for that fail. Managing IT projects is a complex problem. Crises such as COVID 19 and uncertainty are increasing the complexity and challenges in IT projects management. This paper investigates what are the IT project management Key success factors required during and after the Pandemic. Secondary data were collected from literature review in the field of IT project management. an online questionnaire was used to collect the primary data from 107 IT firms. 323 respondents were participated. It is concluded that the following Key success factors are required: e-communication, centralization of data, online project monitoring, designing new policies and guidelines for incorporating new work culture, gaining and establishing project risk management exercises, especially cybersecurity and data protection by gaining access to the latest tools, establishing a culture for strict usage of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) to help project managers complete projects safely, and top management support

Knowledge and perception attributes about halitosis and its treatment modalities among undergraduate students of dentistry and medicine: An analytical cross-sectional study

Background: A worldwide halitosis frequency of 10% - 30% is a common oral health complaint. Bad breath is described as a persistent condition in which a person's oral emissions are unpleasant or disagreeable. It not only hinders the person's ability to go about their routine activities, but also causes them shame and lowers their self-esteem, which in turn lowers their overall quality of life. Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate how students majoring in dentistry and medicine see their own halitosis. Methodology: The students inducted in Bachelors in Medicine & Bachelors in Surgery (MBBS), and Bachelors in Dental Surgery (BDS) programs at various Teaching Institutes in Rawalpindi participated in this descriptive cross-sectional analytical epidemiological study. Around 500 undergraduates were given a self-administered questionnaire. Results: In our study, 96 (22.54%) were male students and 330 (77.46%) were female students respectively.  62 (64.6%) male and 255 (77.3%) female students from a variety of disciplines were familiar with the term ‘Halitosis’. 29 students (6.8%) said that halitosis had a mild impact, 189 students (44.36%) said that it had a moderate effect whereas 206 students (48.35%) rendered it as a major severe significant factor affecting their social life deleteriously