Multi‐Level Efficacy Evidence of a Combined Interprofessional Collaboration and Project Management Training Program for Healthcare Project Teams

Project work is essential for the improvement of healthcare organizations; yet, project management and collaboration in the project context are not taught to healthcare professionals. Three half‐day training workshops integrating project management and collaboration were designed and delivered to 14 interprofessional healthcare project teams. Multivariate measures were taken over the course of 36 weeks. Individual, team, and project‐level results showed high satisfaction and perceptions of utility; improved self‐efficacy for project‐specific task work and teamwork; increased goal clarity and coordination; and a significant impact on the functional performance of projects. This study provides initial benchmark measures regarding the pertinence of project management and interprofessional collaboration training for healthcare project teams.     

Assessing Technical Efficiency of Québec Dairy Farms

The purpose of this paper is twofold. Our first objective is to measure the level of technical efficiency of Québec dairy farms. Our second objective is to gauge the robustness of our results with respect to the selection of a functional form and of a distribution for the inefficiency index. We estimate efficiency frontiers for Cobb-Douglas (C-D), translogarithmic (TL) and generalized Leontief (GL) production functions with half-normal, truncated normal and exponential distributions. Our results, based on likelihood dominance criterion (LDC) indicate that the GL production technology dominates the other two functional forms, and this ranking is robust to changes in the distribution of the inefficiency index. Efficiency scores and ranks are highly correlated for all the functional forms and distributions. The differences in the mean levels of efficiency are statistically significant across functional forms and distributions, although the magnitude of the difference is minuscule. The very high mean level of efficiency and the low standard deviation confirms that Québec dairy farms are very homogenous in terms of getting the most from their inputs. This is not surprising, given that the sector has been very stable policywise and that it has been difficult for dairy farmers to expand. To augment the comparisons, results obtained from data envelopment analysis (DEA), are added to the analysis. In this case, the correlation coefficients between DEA and parametric specifications are found to be very low.     

Emotions,attitudes, and appraisal in the management of climate-related risks by fish farmers in Northern Thailand

Many previous studies have documented that farmers are risk-averse, while other studies have shown that farmers analyze and estimate risks. Conventional risk aversion measures and analytical judgment often do not fully explain decision behavior. Thus, it may be necessary to consider emotions. The objective of this study was to enhance understanding of the interactions between attitudes, analysis, and emotions in making risk decisions. The study used a mixture of methods, including: a tablet game, risk aversion scales, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions with fish cage farmers in Northern Thailand. There was no significant difference in risk aversion with respect to gender, age group, or region. Having sufficient capital made it possible to take more risks. Recently being impacted by floods or droughts, or being very concerned with climate change, was not associated with taking fewer risks. Measures of risk aversion did not predict risk decisions. Feeling worried, concerned, anxious, or stressed were the most common negative emotions referred to in interviews. Fear was a reason for not taking risks. Common positive emotions were joy, excitement, and feeling relaxed or relieved. Men who expressed feeling excited or thrilled chose riskier, higher stocking densities in games than women. A common belief was that men were quicker and more confident when making decisions. Another was that emotions had little impact on decisions, but were a response to success and failure – a claim inconsistent with other findings that imply emotions are also important prior to stocking decisions, and while waiting for the harvest. Fear and anxiety in the period prior to harvest may help motivate risk management practices, such as close monitoring and aeration. In conclusion, emotions may play a more important role in making decisions about climate-related risks than was previously recognized.