O Estudo da rede de relação dos Empreendedores - Caso das empresas sediadas no Parkurbis, Parque de Ciência e Tecnologia da Covilhã

O presente estudo dedica-se à exploração do conceito de marketing aplicado às Pequenas e Médias Empresas (PME). Este tipo de empresas pela sua dimensão e pela sua fragilidade na obtenção de recursos a nível técnico, operacional, financeiro e humano utiliza o marketing de uma forma muito própria, mais informal, proactiva, intuitiva e não estruturada. Esta forma de estar no mercado intitula-se marketing empreendedor e é a base deste trabalho. Tendo em conta a especificidade das PME as práticas de marketing empreendedor são muitas vezes alicerçadas pela rede de relação dos empreendedores. O presente estudo analisa nove PME sediadas no Parkurbis, parque de ciência e tecnologia da Covilhã, através de entrevistas em profundidade. A incidência do estudo recai sobre o impacto da rede de relação em decisões de gestão, nomeadamente as associadas às estratégias do produto, preço, comunicação e distribuição. A análise foi feita de forma empírica com base em entrevistas onde se observou a importância da rede de relação dos empreendedores. A análise dos resultados permitiu concluir que a angariação de novos clientes e de novos negócios têm grande impacto resultante do contacto da rede de relação dos empreendedores, enquanto o estabelecimento do preço e a contratação de novos colaboradores têm um impacto menor.The present study is dedicated to the exploration of the concept of marketing applied to Small and Medium Enterprises (SME). This kind of enterprises, due to their size and frailty obtaining resources on a technical, operational, financial and human level, uses marketing in a very particular way, a more informal, proactive, intuitive and non-structured way. This way of facing the market is called entrepreneurial marketing and is the base to this research. Taking into account the distinctiveness of the SME, the practices of entrepreneurial marketing are often founded on the entrepreneurs’ relationship network. This study analyses nine SME based in Parkurbis, Science and Technology Park of Covilhã, through in-depth interviews. The focus of the study is laid on the impact of the relationship network on management decisions, namely those associated to products, price, communication and distribution strategies. The interviews have been analysedempirically in which it was observed the importance of the entrepreneurs’ relationship network.The analysis of the results allowed me to conclude that the customer and new businesses acquisition has a great impact resulting from the contact through the entrepreneurs’ relationship network, while price setting and recruitment of new employees has a smaller impact

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved

Global variation in postoperative mortality and complications after cancer surgery: a multicentre, prospective cohort study in 82 countries

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licenseBackground: 80% of individuals with cancer will require a surgical procedure, yet little comparative data exist on early outcomes in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared postoperative outcomes in breast, colorectal, and gastric cancer surgery in hospitals worldwide, focusing on the effect of disease stage and complications on postoperative mortality. Methods: This was a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients undergoing surgery for primary breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer requiring a skin incision done under general or neuraxial anaesthesia. The primary outcome was death or major complication within 30 days of surgery. Multilevel logistic regression determined relationships within three-level nested models of patients within hospitals and countries. Hospital-level infrastructure effects were explored with three-way mediation analyses. This study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03471494. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and Jan 31, 2019, we enrolled 15 958 patients from 428 hospitals in 82 countries (high income 9106 patients, 31 countries; upper-middle income 2721 patients, 23 countries; or lower-middle income 4131 patients, 28 countries). Patients in LMICs presented with more advanced disease compared with patients in high-income countries. 30-day mortality was higher for gastric cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (adjusted odds ratio 3·72, 95% CI 1·70–8·16) and for colorectal cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (4·59, 2·39–8·80) and upper-middle-income countries (2·06, 1·11–3·83). No difference in 30-day mortality was seen in breast cancer. The proportion of patients who died after a major complication was greatest in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (6·15, 3·26–11·59) and upper-middle-income countries (3·89, 2·08–7·29). Postoperative death after complications was partly explained by patient factors (60%) and partly by hospital or country (40%). The absence of consistently available postoperative care facilities was associated with seven to 10 more deaths per 100 major complications in LMICs. Cancer stage alone explained little of the early variation in mortality or postoperative complications. Interpretation: Higher levels of mortality after cancer surgery in LMICs was not fully explained by later presentation of disease. The capacity to rescue patients from surgical complications is a tangible opportunity for meaningful intervention. Early death after cancer surgery might be reduced by policies focusing on strengthening perioperative care systems to detect and intervene in common complications. Funding: National Institute for Health Research Global Health Research Unit

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 licenseBackground: Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide. Methods: A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study—a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3·85 [95% CI 2·58–5·75]; p<0·0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63·0% vs 82·7%; OR 0·35 [0·23–0·53]; p<0·0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer. Interpretation: Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised. Funding: National Institute for Health and Care Research