Emergency Situations, Participation, and Community-based Disaster Responses in Southeast Asia: Gray Areas and Causes for Optimism

Emergency and participation intersect to form the basis of Community-Based Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (CBDRRM). Thisarticle has three aims. First, it explores the criticisms of participatory development in CBDRRM. Second, it highlights how disasters provide insights into participatory development when disasters are viewed not merely as terrible events but as catalysts for social change. Third, thearticle contends that despite its flaws, CBDRRM is neither hegemonic nor oppressive but can be adapted to the needs and cultures of communities. Thearticle calls for an empathetic form of participation and room for diverse partners to work together.Keywords: disasters • Indian Ocean tsunami • floods • fires •Southeast Asia • Community-based Disaster Risk Reduction and Management • cultures of disaste

Typhoon Ondoy and the Translation of Disaster Expertise in Barangay Banaba, Marikina Valley

Thisarticle investigates community-based disaster responses among informal settlers in a barangay located just outside Metro Manila in the aftermath of Typhoon Ondoy (international code name Ketsana) in 2009. People have embraced some technical measures, such as forcible evacuation, but others have continued customary practices, such as seeking refuge on rooftops where they could get trapped during floods. An important factor in this process has been the credible work of a local people’s organization, which has mediated technical expertise from outside the community. Adaptation of disaster expertise is an ongoing and unpredictable process, shaped by people’s lived experiences and the wider political, economic, and social context.KEYWORDS: Philippines • informal settlers • disaster expertise •natural hazards • NGO

Isolation & characterization of antimicrobial protein from mushroom

Antimicrobial proteins or peptides are universal feature of the defense systems of virtually all forms of life, with representatives found in organisms ranging from bacteria to plants and mammals. Antimicrobial peptides are typically relatively short, positively charged and amphiphilic. In this experiment, soluble proteins were extracted from three types of mushrooms which were L edodes, A. polytricha and P. sp., but only two samples (L. edodes and A. polytricha) possessed antimicrobial properties. Two extraction methods that were used in this experiment such as distilled water extraction and salt solution extraction. The efficiency of these two methods was compared by the determination of protein recovery using Bradford assay. From the experiment, the salt solution extraction was found better due to the higher protein recovery of 20.37% and 18.52% for sample L.e.2 and P.sp.2 respectively. In order to analyze the antifungal and antibacterial activities of the proteins, disk diffusion assays was applied for each sample and the MIe values were determined for each sample with antimicrobial activities. The extracted protein of all samples were found less effective against Gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginose and fungus Botrytis cinerea, but L. edodes and A. polytricha demonstrated inhibitory activity against Gram-positive bacteria Streptococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus. The proteins in vitro exhibited effective antibacterial activities against the both strains of bacteria at minimum concentration of 0.5mg/ml, except sample L.edodes that inhibited the growth of S. aureus even with concentration of 0.2Smglml. Apart from that, the antioxidant activities of the proteins were investigated by applying DPPH free radical-scavenging assay. There was only low potency of the antioxidant activities showed by all the protein extracts with the highest 29.44%. The protein extracted from the both samples was purified using DEAE-cellulose chromatography. However, there was low protein recovery shown by the Bradford assay. The purity and molecular mass of the extracted and purified proteins were then determined by SDS-PAGE analysis. The purified proteins of sample L. edodes and A. polytricha were found appear as few protein bands with range of size 18-55kDa and 15-50kDa respectively

Best Sourcing - Towards Lean ICT Shared Services In A Singapore Government Organisation

Many government organisations in Singapore have been embarking on a strategic decision to drive lean public service by pushing down costs for operating expenditures, improving service performance and concentrating all or most of the resources available on core business. In such circumstances, outsourcing becomes almost inevitable. Outsourcing allows the organisation to focus on its core business by transferring operational functions to external specialists. Public Provident Service (PPS), a public social security organisation, faces the same dilemma of escalating IT costs and reduction in service performance due to increasingly being required to coordinate the delivery of duplicated services across business units. The evolution began one year ago when PPS made the bold, sweeping decision to have an external, market-tested Information and Communication Technology (ICT) organisation to execute standardised operating ICT operations. Some may call this outsourcing, but PPS's new approach to sourcing strategy was to build a partnership between best sourcing and shared services. This dissertation was to study the impact of ICT outsourcing in PPS. This research starts with a detailed literature review that highlights the pros and cons for different sourcing strategies and outlines the key findings of other authors. In the analysis chapter, different aspects of business, economic, shared-services and technical on sourcing strategies are examined that helped PPS to devise the best sourcing on shared ICT services strategy plan. The subsequent analysis would address the key business areas in which the organisation needs to achieve significant improvement if it has to meet its strategic objectives. Furthermore, it addressed the consequences on the business operations and changes, risks and challenges to overcome finally the implementation of the best sourcing on ICT shared services. At the end, the main conclusions from this study is that the best sourcing on shared ICT services strategy plan drives PPS towards lean and efficient public services. With a standard ICT operating environment implemented in PPS to derive significant cost savings while enhancing operating efficiency and providing higher quality service performance

Best Sourcing - Towards Lean ICT Shared Services In A Singapore Government Organisation

Many government organisations in Singapore have been embarking on a strategic decision to drive lean public service by pushing down costs for operating expenditures, improving service performance and concentrating all or most of the resources available on core business. In such circumstances, outsourcing becomes almost inevitable. Outsourcing allows the organisation to focus on its core business by transferring operational functions to external specialists. Public Provident Service (PPS), a public social security organisation, faces the same dilemma of escalating IT costs and reduction in service performance due to increasingly being required to coordinate the delivery of duplicated services across business units. The evolution began one year ago when PPS made the bold, sweeping decision to have an external, market-tested Information and Communication Technology (ICT) organisation to execute standardised operating ICT operations. Some may call this outsourcing, but PPS's new approach to sourcing strategy was to build a partnership between best sourcing and shared services. This dissertation was to study the impact of ICT outsourcing in PPS. This research starts with a detailed literature review that highlights the pros and cons for different sourcing strategies and outlines the key findings of other authors. In the analysis chapter, different aspects of business, economic, shared-services and technical on sourcing strategies are examined that helped PPS to devise the best sourcing on shared ICT services strategy plan. The subsequent analysis would address the key business areas in which the organisation needs to achieve significant improvement if it has to meet its strategic objectives. Furthermore, it addressed the consequences on the business operations and changes, risks and challenges to overcome finally the implementation of the best sourcing on ICT shared services. At the end, the main conclusions from this study is that the best sourcing on shared ICT services strategy plan drives PPS towards lean and efficient public services. With a standard ICT operating environment implemented in PPS to derive significant cost savings while enhancing operating efficiency and providing higher quality service performance

Characterization of Bactrocera dorsalis (fruit fly) emergence inhibitor from neem leaf-empty fruit bunch-based vermicompost using metabolomics approach

Neem (Azadirachta indica) and oil palm empty fruit bunch have been reported to contain varieties of secondary metabolites in which some possess bioactivities. Through vermicomposting of these plant materials, a useful final product which exerted inhibition activity on the emergence of Bactrocera dorsalis may be produced. This study presents the results of chemometric data analysis which describes the fruit fly emergence inhibition activity of neem leaf-empty fruit bunch-based vermicompost. The vermicompost, with neem leaf and empty fruit bunch served as controls, were analyzed by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR)spectroscopy. The chemometric evaluation was performed by principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least square (PLS). The NMR profiles of the chemical constituents of the vermicompost were correlated to the inhibition activity of the fruit flies wherein neem leaf was shown to be the major inhibitor. Based on NMR-metabolomics approach, the metabolites of the neem leaf responsible for the activity were identified as azadirachtin and salannin

Associations of Polypharmacy and Inappropriate Medications with Adverse Outcomes in Older Adults with Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

© AlphaMed Press 2019 Background: Polypharmacy (PP) and potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) are highly prevalent in older adults with cancer. This study systematically reviews the associations of PP and/or PIM with outcomes and, through a meta-analysis, obtains estimates of postoperative outcomes associated with PP in this population. Materials and Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Register of Clinical Trials using standardized terms for concepts of PP, PIM, and cancer. Eligible studies included cohort studies, cross-sectional studies, meta-analyses, and clinical trials which examined outcomes associated with PP and/or PIM and included older adults with cancer. A random effects model included studies in which definitions of PP were consistent to examine the association of PP with postoperative complications. Results: Forty-seven articles met the inclusion criteria. PP was defined as five or more medications in 57% of the studies. Commonly examined outcomes included chemotherapy toxicities, postoperative complications, functional decline, hospitalization, and overall survival. PP was associated with chemotherapy toxicities (4/9 studies), falls (3/3 studies), functional decline (3/3 studies), and overall survival (2/11 studies). A meta-analysis of four studies indicated an association between PP (≥5 medications) and postoperative complications (overall odds ratio, 1.3; 95% confidence interval [1.3–2.8]). PIM was associated with adverse outcomes in 3 of 11 studies. Conclusion: PP is associated with postoperative complications, chemotherapy toxicities, and physical and functional decline. Only three studies showed an association between PIM and outcomes. However, because of inconsistent definitions, heterogeneous populations, and variable study designs, these associations should be further investigated in prospective studies. Implications for Practice: Polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) are prevalent in older adults with cancer. This systematic review summarizes the associations of polypharmacy and PIM with health outcomes in older patients with cancer. Polypharmacy and PIM have been associated with postoperative complications, frailty, falls, medication nonadherence, chemotherapy toxicity, and mortality. These findings emphasize the prognostic importance of careful medication review and identification of PIM by oncology teams. They also underscore the need to develop and test interventions to address polypharmacy and PIM in older patients with cancer, with the goal of improving outcomes in these patients

Understanding cognition in older patients with cancer

Cancer and neurocognitive disorders, such as dementia and delirium, are common and serious diseases in the elderly that are accompanied by high degree of morbidity and mortality. Furthermore, evidence supports the under-diagnosis of both dementia and delirium in older adults. Complex questions exist regarding the interaction of dementia and delirium with cancer, beginning with guidelines on how best measure disease severity, the optimal screening test for either disorder, the appropriate level of intervention in the setting of abnormal findings, and strategies aimed at preventing the development or progression of either process. Ethical concerns emerge in the research setting, pertaining to the detection of cognitive dysfunction in participants, validity of consent, disclosure of abnormal results if screening is pursued, and recommended level of intervention by investigators. Furthermore, understanding the ways in which comorbid cognitive dysfunction and cancer impact both cancer and non-cancer-related outcomes is essential in guiding treatment decisions. In the following article, we will discuss what is presently known of the interactions of pre-existing cognitive impairment and delirium with cancer. We will also discuss identified deficits in our knowledge base, and propose ways in which innovative research may address these gaps

Papillary renal cell carcinoma with metastatic laparoscopic port site and vaginal involvement: a case report

10.1186/1752-1947-5-131Journal of Medical Case Reports513