Suchergebnisse

"If major advances are to be made in coping with most of the major arthropod pest problems, then the tactics and strategies for managing such insects, ticks and mites must change. They must change from the current, limited scale, reactive, broad-spectrum measures to preventive measures that are target-pest specific and rigidly applied on an area-wide basis." E.F. Knipling on the occasion of receiving the World Food Prize on 12 October 1992

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to assess the contribution of mid-level management and support practices to the overall performance of a district healthcare system. METHODS: This case study was carried out in the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was based on analysis of (i) preventive and curative healthcare services and (ii) management and support practices provided from 2000 to 2008. RESULTS: In response to recurring sociopolitical unrest since 1992, the mid-level health system (provincial level) in North Kivu has strengthened management and support practices. The main goals have been to optimize allocation of interventions by external emergency organizations and integration of specialized program activities, to harmonize intervention techniques implemented by external partners, to standardize supervision of sanitary districts with regard to care provider skills, and to adapt strategic options defined by the Ministry of Health to the provincial level. Using this comprehensive approach, the performance of the North Kivu Province in terms of curative and preventive care has exceeded the national average since 2001. Between 2001 and 2008, use of curative services progressed from 0.36 to 0.50 new cases/capita/year. Positive results have also been recorded for infrastructure coverage, essential medicine stock, health information system, and emergency preparedness. CONCLUSION: Stronger mid-level management and support practices have improved care activities in the health district while protecting the population from unstructured interventions by emergency organizations or specialized programs. A comprehensive management approach has also improved the resilience of the district and increased its contribution to Millennium Development Goals. ; Peer reviewed

AbstractThe European Medicines Agency (EMA) regards the potential risks of human medicinal products to the environment and their impacts are assessed, as well as management to limit this impact. Hazard assessment of novel materials, which differ from conventional chemicals, e.g. nanobiomaterials, poses testing challenges and represents a work-in-progress with much focus on the optimization of required methodologies. For this work-in-progress, we here highlight where changes/updates are required in relation to the main elements for international testing based on OECD guidelines, supported by knowledge from the nanotoxicity area. The outline describes two major sections, nanobiomaterials and environmental hazards, including its challenges and learned lessons, with recommendations for implementation in OECD guidelines. Finally, the way forward via a testing strategy is described.

This article focuses on the process of urbanization and growth in the city of Juiz de Fora in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais during the transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century. We problematize the relationship between this process, marked by a developmentalist and elitist ideology, and the construc-tion of the political-criminal and punitive framework in the municipality. Based on the dialogue between his-torical studies on the city and the theoretical frameworks of critical criminology, we observe the bonds connecting the processes of urbanization and development and the punitive economy during the period under study, along with the social and criminal impacts throughout the course of the city's history.