Capital accumulation,income distribution and endogenous fertility in an overlapping generations general equilibrium model

A study is conducted in attempts to increase the understanding of the links between macroeconomic effects and causes of population growth in formulating policy. An overlapping generations general equilibrium model is employed aggregating household decisions about fertility, savings, and investment in the human capital of children with the objective of studying intertemporal relationships among population growth, income distribution, inter-generation social mobility, skill composition of the labor force, and household income. As a result of endogenous fertility, the equilibrium path attains steady state from the second generation. Income tax transfer, child taxation, and social security taxation policies are also examined in the paper. A structural explanation is given for the inverse household income-child quantity and negative child quality-quantity relationships seen in developing countries. In a Cobb-Douglas economy, these relationships hold in the short-run, potentially working over the long-run in other economies. Overall, the model shows that group interests may hinder emergence of perfect capital markets with private initiatives. Where developing countries are concerned, these results have strong implications for population policy. A policy mix of building good quality schools, or subsidizing rural education, introducing a formal social security program, and providing high-yield, risk-free investments, banking, and insurance services to the poor is recommended.     

Measuring cost savings in the operating room: a matter of FOCUS (follow-through, obsolescence, control, utilization, standardization)

In summary, changes came slowly at first in the OR. The biggest inventory reduction came about a year after the effort had begun. It would seem that tackling obsolescence, standardizing products, etc. would give an initial "big chunk" savings, with small amounts coming later as inventories are lowered. What we expected did not occur, due to the inherent nature of practices and what was customarily being used. For example, previously, some equipment purchases were paid for by purchasing product, which resulted in long-term commitments and high supply costs. The OR at times seemed more like a process of managing change, not just supplies. FOCUS is a daily process. How many times can you afford to overlook this process? How often are the mistakes of the past repeated? In review, we suggest this simple outline: Follow-through (review each case from start to finish), Obsolescence (schedule inventories every six months), Control (achieve inventory management by adjusting PAR levels to needs), Utilization (utilize product/equipment with your control), and Standardization (standardize products and measure results).     

Business ethics: the materiel/manufacturing perspective

The discussion of purchasing practices and product integrity, which have ethical implications for materiel/manufacturing management, serves to illustrate how routine decisions can have larger implications for the firm as a whole. Management needs to take a proactive role in confronting ethical issues by (1) demonstrating a corporate commitment to sound ethics in business practices, (2) providing written policies where appropriate to provide a basis for sound ethical conducts, (3) educating various functional areas to understand their responsibility in seeming unrelated ethical problems, (4) delegating authority in ethical issues where such issues are considered in decision making, and (5) fostering interfunctional communication as a means in establishing corporatewide responsibility. The basic philosophical principles of JIT serve as a blueprint for recognizing and managing ethical responsibility. The unexpected by-products of a JIT implementation may be vendor/customer good will and an excellent reputation for the firm.     

The competitive solution and the health care problems of today

Mark Pauly claims that a "competitive" health care system will solve the health care cost crisis. This article examines how well the competitive solution deals with the five central problems of the health care system: (1) almost universal lack of adequate health insurance for nursing homes and home care; (2) Medicaid's penurious approach to payment for health services for the poor; (3) the emergence of a dual health care system, especially for children; (4) the entrenched waste and inefficiency of the health care system; and (5) consumers' inability to judge the quality of health care. The competitive solution does not eliminate any of these problems--and may not even improve some of them.     

A vision for excellence

One hospital integrates employee relations, customer service and commitment to quality into one successful, award-winning program. Employees at AMI Palmetto General are motivated to constantly consider the hospital's goals and strive for excellence.     

Vying for time. Work and family

Time--there is never enough of it. There are never enough hours in the day to do everything at work and at home. Today's employees, forced to choose between work obligations and family responsibilities, often feel frazzled and guilty. Some employers recognize these conflicts and are finding ways to lighten the work/family load. They are offering a sophisticated combination of dependent-care options, flexible work hours and family-related benefits tailored to meet the needs of the employees within their specific industries. HRMagazine looks at leaders in six major industries--manufacturing, health, communications/technology, financial management, government and retail. No one can give employees that 25-hour day that everyone feels they need to juggle all their work and family obligations. But these industry leaders have provided a nurturing environment where employees can successfully balance those obligations.     

Resource based relative value scale: a new challenge and opportunity for health care cost management

Beginning in 1992, the use of resource based relative value scale (RBRVS) will greatly change the way physicians are reimbursed for services to Medicare patients. This new system will also have implications for trust funds and corporate providers of health care benefits.     

Developing and applying a framework to evaluate participatory research for sustainability

The normative implications of participatory research imply ongoing social learning that ought to lead to personal and institutional transformation. Sustainability science also requires reflexive scientific practice in order to enable the co-generation of solutions that take account of uncertainty and multiple forms of knowledge. However, there is little published peer-reviewed material on how to assess to what degree the rhetoric regarding the benefits of participatory research are achieved in practice, particularly with regard to participatory research for sustainability. This paper outlines how linking the rationales for participatory research and for sustainability science to the principles of evaluation can deliver a conceptually coherent evaluation framework for assessment. The approach for evaluating participatory research in this context consists of framing the evaluation, i.e., setting boundaries on the subject within its social, political, environmental and institutional context and selecting appropriate criteria, methods and data sources. The application of the framework, using a summative evaluation of participatory research for sustainability in north-east Australia, illustrates its strengths and weaknesses, concluding with a consideration of its applicability to further participatory sustainability science.