Health expenditures' coping strategies: A study on African low-income countries

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Economics from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Auto industry bailout: too big to fail. To big for whom?

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Economics from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Reporting comprehensive income: Evidence from Portuguese listed companies

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

Assessing the efficacy of the Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) training for non-specialized health workers in Ethiopia

RESUMO: A OMS lançou em 2008, o Programa de Acção do Gap em Saúde Mental (mhGAP) para suprir a falta de cuidados, especialmente em países de rendimento baixo e médio, para as pessoas que sofrem de perturbações mentais, neurológicas e de uso de substâncias (MNS). Um componente crucial do mhGAP é representado pelo esforço no sentido da integração da saúde mental nos cuidados de saúde primários. Na Etiópia, o mhGAP foi monitorizado durante 3 anos, graças a um projeto de demonstração implementado em clínicas selecionadas em quatro regiões do país. A fase de demonstração de mhGAP na Etiópia traduziu-se principalmente na formação de profissionais de saúde não especializados, fornecendo-lhes orientação e supervisão apoiada para a utilização de medicamentos psicotrópicos essenciais e na coordenação com o Ministério Etíope Federal da Saúde, Hospital Amanuel de Saúde Mental e as Secretarias Regionais de Saúde ( RHBs ). O presente trabalho investigou a eficácia do pacote de formação mhGAP através de uma análise das pontuações dos participantes no pré- e pós-testes. A análise estatística mostrou - com uma exceção - que a melhoria dos formandos é estatisticamente significativa, o que sugere que os conhecimentos dos participantes é melhorada na fase de pós-teste. A eficácia do pacote de formação mhGAP para profissionais de saúde não especializados é uma evidência promissora de que os mesmos podem ser treinados com sucesso para realizar um pacote básico de intervenções para a prestação de cuidados e tratamento para pessoas com perturbações mentais, neurológicas e de uso de substâncias. Este trabalho destaca, também, várias limitações não apenas inerentes ao próprio projecto de investigação tais como o número limitado de respostas que foram analisadas e a falta de dados de uma das quatro regiões onde mhGAP foi testado na Etiópia. As principais limitações decorrem de facto da abordagem global limitar as intervenções de saúde mental ao programa de formação e supervisão dos trabalhadores de cuidados de saúde primários . Este processo só será bem sucedido se, juntamente com outras intervenções - que vão desde o desenvolvimento de currículos para o desenvolvimento de uma legislação de saúde mental -, fôr incluído numa estratégia mais abrangente para a reforma da saúde mental e desafiar o status quo.-----------ABSTRACT:In 2008, WHO launched the Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) to address the lack of care, especially in low- and middle- income countries, for people living with mental, neurological and substance use (MNS) disorders. A crucial component of mhGAP is represented by the endeavor towards integration of mental health into primary health care. In Ethiopia, mhGAP has been piloted for 3 years thanks to a demonstration project implemented in selected clinics in 4 regions of the country. The demonstration phase of mhGAP in Ethiopia has mainly translated into training of non-specialized health workers, providing them with mentorship and supportive supervision, availing essential psychotropic medications and coordinating with the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health, Amanuel Mental Health Hospital and the Regional Health Bureaus (RHBs). The present paper investigated the efficacy of the mhGAP training package through an analysis of the participants’ scores at pre-test and post-test. The statistical analysis showed - with one exception - that the improvement of trainees is statistically significant, therefore suggesting that the knowledge of participants is improved in the post-test phase. The efficacy of the mhGAP training package on non-specialized health workers is promising evidence that non-specialized health-care providers can be successfully trained to deliver a basic package of interventions for providing care and treatment for people with mental, neurological and substance use disorders. However, this paper also highlights several limitations, which are not only inherent to the research itself, such as the limited number of scores that was analyzed, or the lack of data from one of the four regions where mhGAP has been piloted in Ethiopia; major limitations occur in fact in the overall approach of confining mental health interventions to training and supervising primary health care workers. This process will only be successful if coupled with other interventions – ranging from curricula development to development of a mental health legislation - and if it is included in a more comprehensive strategy to reform mental health and challenge the status quo.

Income and mental health

RESUMO: A enorme carga e o sofrimento provocado pelas doenças mentais no mundo tornam imperioso conhecer melhor os seus determinantes. Combater as desigualdades em saude tornou-‐se uma prioridadade de saúde publica, mas e necessário estabelecer as suas vias causais para ser possível implementar intervenções e politicas efetivas. A literatura cientifica tem sugerido a importância dos determinantes sociais na etiologia e evolucao das principais doenças mentais e do suicidio, com especial enfase no papel da desvantagem social. Ainda assim, o papel dos factores psicossociais na saúde mental, e especificamente o papel do rendimento e da sua distribuição não tem sido investigado no meu pais, Portugal. No meu projecto de investigação proponho‐me a estudar se em Portugal existe uma associação entre as doenças mentais e o rendimento absoluto e relativo. Pretendo usar os dados do primeiro inquérito epidemiológico sobre saude mental realizado em Portugal,um inquérito nacional transversal no domicilio que foi conduzido em 2009, integrado no WHO World Mental Health Survey Consortium. Nesta tese de mestrado apresento os resultados da minha revisão da literatura Sobre a relação entre oestatuto socio-economico e a saúde mental e esboço uma proposta de pesquisa para continuar a investigar estetema. A evidencia que apresento mostra que a exposição aum vasto leque de riscos psicossociais, como o baixo rendimento, a educação limitada e o estatuto ocupacionalbaixo,aumenta a probabilidade de desenvolver problemas de saúde mental.. As diferencas em saúde seguem um gradiente social, com piores resultados de saúde a medida que a posição na hierarquia social diminui. Tambem sumarizo a literatura sobre o papel do contexto na produção de desigualdades em saúde para alem das características individuais. Tem especial interesse o potencial efeito na saúde do rendimento relativo e a importância da distribuição dos rendimentos como determinante de saude. Finalmente, delineio os possíveis mecanismos através dos quais o estatuto socio-economico contribui para as disparidades em saúde.-------------------ABSTRACT: The enormous burden and suffering from mental disorders worldwide makes it imperative to better understand its determinants. Tackling nhealth inequalities has become a public health priority, but it is necessary to establish their causalpathways in order to implement effective interventions and policies. Scientific literature has suggested the importance of social determinants in the aetiology and course of major mental disorders and suicide, with special emphasis on the role of social disadvantage. Nevertheless, the role of psychosocial factors on mental health, and specifically the role of income and its distribution, has not been researched in my home country, Portugal. In my research project I propose to study whether in Portugal there is an association between mental disorders and absolute and relative income. I intend to use data from the first Portuguese Mental Health Survey, a national cross-sectional household survey that was conducted in 2009, integrated in the WHO World Mental Health Survey Consortium. In this masters thesis I present the results of my literature review on the relation between Socioeconomic status and mental health and outline a research proposal to further nvestigate this topic. The body of evidence that I present shows that exposure to a wide range of psychosocial risks, such as low income, limited education, and low occupational status, increases the likelihood of mental health problems. Differences in health follow a social gradient, with worsening health as the position in the social ladder decreases. I also summarize the literature on the role of context in producing health inequalities beyond individual characteristics. Of special interest is the potential health effect of relative income and the importance of income distribution as a health determinant. Finally, I outline the various possible mechanisms for health disparities associated with socioeconomic status.

The role of income inequality on fiscal multipliers

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Double Degree in Economics from the Nova School of Business and Economics and University of Maastricht

O contrato de Project Finance

Currently, Angola portrays a notorious economic growth and due to recent innovative legislations, it has become the major investment attracting pole, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, having, thus, an extraordinary potentiality for a rapid and sustainable development, likely to place her in outstanding positions in the world economic ranking. Yet, such economic growth entails demanding levels of intensive investment in infrastructure, what has been reported of the Angolan Government to be unable to respond to, save if recurring to very high index of external debt, poisoning, in this way, the future budgeting of the country. Due to these infrastructure investment shortages, the cost of production remains highly onerous and the cost of life extremely unaffordable. On this account, the current study disserts about the contract of Project Finance; an alternative finance resource given as a viable solution for the private financing of infrastructure, aiming to demonstrate that such contractual figure, likewise the experience of several emerging economies and others, is a contract bid framework to take into account in today’s world. It refers to a financing technique – through which the Government may satisfy a common need (for example, the construction of a public domain or public servicing), without having to pay neither offer any collateral – based on a complex legal-financial engineering, arranged throughout a coalition of typical and atypical agreements, whereby it is mandatory to look back at the basic concepts of corporate law. More than just a simple financial study, the dissertation at stake analyses the nature and legal framework of Project Finance, which is a legally atypical and innominate contract, concluding that there is a relevant need for regulating and devoting a special legal regime in the Angolan jurisdiction for this promising legal form in the contemporary corporate finance world.

Promoting the Big Slice Pizzaria and developing key partnerships

The Purpose of this Work Project is to develop a Marketing plan, with a special focus on promotional activities and partnerships’ developments, for the Big Slice, a fast food Pizzeria that is currently operating in Lisbon, where I'm currently working in the marketing and promotion department. The project aims at developing promotions and key partnerships that maximize the opportunity. For that, I have analyzed the major trends in the food sector in Portugal, and I have conducted several qualitative interviews among young individuals. Finally I have developed and implemented various alternative promotions and established important key partnerships.

Comprehensive income: evidence from Portuguese listed companies on reporting choices and value relevance

This work project aims at analysing choices related to Comprehensive income (CI) of Portuguese listed firms and understanding the reasons behind them. Additionally, it studies the relevance of CI versus Net Income (NI). It was found that firm’s size and volume of Other comprehensive income (OCI) are positively related with the choice for separate statements while smaller firms with positive NI and negative OCI tend to disclose less information about taxes. The value relevance of CI proved to be superior to that of NI but OCI seems to have no incremental value relevance.

Progressivity in the Portuguese personal income tax system

This Work Project analyzes the evolution of the Portuguese personal income tax system’s progressivity over the period of 2005 through 2013. It presents the first computation of cardinal progressivity measures using administrative tax data for Portugal. We compute several progressivity indices and find that progressivity has had very modest variations from 2005 to 2012, whilst from 2012 to 2013 there has been a relatively stronger decrease, excluding the impact of the income tax surcharge of the years 2012 and 2013. When this latter is included, progressivity of 2012 and 2013 decreases considerably. Analyzing the effective average tax rates of the top income percentiles in the income scale, we find that these rates have increased over the period 2010–2013, suggesting that an analysis of effective tax rates is insufficient to assess progressivity in the whole tax scheme.

Blended Learning project with Applied Optics. Case study

To show with the case of Applied Optics (AO), the adequacy of blended learning to the teaching/learning process in experimental Science and technology (S&T).

Design of a doctorate programme on technology assessment: A sabbatical leave project

The work agenda includes the production of a report on different doctoral programmes on “Technology Assessment” in Europe, the US and Japan, in order to analyse collaborative post-graduation activities. Finally, the proposals on collaborative post-graduation programme between FCTUNL and ITAS-FZK will be organised by an ongoing discussion process with colleagues from ITAS.

An interdisciplinary approach to the study of colour in portuguese manuscript illuminations

Dissertação apresentada para obtenção do Grau de Doutor em Conservação e Restauro, especialidade Teoria, História e Técnicas, pela Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia

Integrated ecological-economic modelling and assessment aproach for coastal ecosystem management

Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Sciences and Technology, New University of Lisbon, for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Sciences

Contagem de pontos em projecção triangular A rede de contagem TRIREDE

The TRIREDE triangular counting net is presented, as well as the algorithm for its calculation and the TRIREDE program, used to project points in a triangular net and the calculation of a density grid.