Importance of administrative transparency in the correctional context : knowing the rules

As a class, prisoners are vulnerable to numerous privations while in custody. In particular, prisoners are at a distinct disadvantage in terms of being able to control the central features of their daily lives. The lives of prisoners are circumscribed by numerous rules and regulations and their administration by correctional administrators. It is important that prisoners are aware of the content of the rules that govern their existence and the precise basis upon which power is exercised over them. In a recent freedom of information application in Victoria, a prisoner sought a personal copy of the rules that would govern his life in that particular institution. The prison authorities refused that request. The prisoner then appealed that decision to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and was unsuccessful. It is contended that the analysis used in that case was flawed through the misreading of the nature of correctional environment and the fundamental importance of transparency in such a context.

Academic and administrative support for distance learners

The named works discuss the process of completing a doctorate via distance education.

Using clinical trial data and linked administrative health data to reduce the risk of adverse events associated with the uptake of newly released drugs by older Australians : a model process

Background
The study was undertaken to evaluate the contribution of a process which uses clinical trial data plus linked de-identified administrative health data to forecast potential risk of adverse events associated with the use of newly released drugs by older Australian patients.

Methods
The study uses publicly available data from the clinical trials of a newly released drug to ascertain which patient age groups, gender, comorbidities and co-medications were excluded in the trials. It then uses linked de-identified hospital morbidity and medications dispensing data to investigate the comorbidities and co-medications of patients who suffer from the target morbidity of the new drug and who are the likely target population for the drug. The clinical trial information and the linked morbidity and medication data are compared to assess which patient groups could potentially be at risk of an adverse event associated with use of the new drug.

Results
Applying the model in a retrospective real-world scenario identified that the majority of the sample group of Australian patients aged 65 years and over with the target morbidity of the newly released COX-2-selective NSAID rofecoxib also suffered from a major morbidity excluded in the trials of that drug, indicating a substantial potential risk of adverse events amongst those patients. This risk was borne out in post-release morbidity and mortality associated with use of that drug.

Conclusions
Clinical trial data and linked administrative health data can together support a prospective assessment of patient groups who could be at risk of an adverse event if they are prescribed a newly released drug in the context of their age, gender, comorbidities and/or co-medications. Communication of this independent risk information to prescribers has the potential to reduce adverse events in the period after the release of the new drug, which is when the risk is greatest.

Note: The terms 'adverse drug reaction' and 'adverse drug event' have come to be used interchangeably in the current literature. For consistency, the authors have chosen to use the wider term 'adverse drug event' (ADE).

Machine-learning prediction of cancer survival: a retrospective study using electronic administrative records and a cancer registry

Using the prediction of cancer outcome as a model, we have tested the hypothesis that through analysing routinely collected digital data contained in an electronic administrative record (EAR), using machine-learning techniques, we could enhance conventional methods in predicting clinical outcomes.

Using clinical trial data and linked administrative health data to reduce the risk of adverse events associated with the uptake of newly released drugs by older Australians: a model process

BACKGROUND: The study was undertaken to evaluate the contribution of a process which uses clinical trial data plus linked de-identified administrative health data to forecast potential risk of adverse events associated with the use of newly released drugs by older Australian patients. METHODS: The study uses publicly available data from the clinical trials of a newly released drug to ascertain which patient age groups, gender, comorbidities and co-medications were excluded in the trials. It then uses linked de-identified hospital morbidity and medications dispensing data to investigate the comorbidities and co-medications of patients who suffer from the target morbidity of the new drug and who are the likely target population for the drug. The clinical trial information and the linked morbidity and medication data are compared to assess which patient groups could potentially be at risk of an adverse event associated with use of the new drug. RESULTS: Applying the model in a retrospective real-world scenario identified that the majority of the sample group of Australian patients aged 65 years and over with the target morbidity of the newly released COX-2-selective NSAID rofecoxib also suffered from a major morbidity excluded in the trials of that drug, indicating a substantial potential risk of adverse events amongst those patients. This risk was borne out in post-release morbidity and mortality associated with use of that drug. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical trial data and linked administrative health data can together support a prospective assessment of patient groups who could be at risk of an adverse event if they are prescribed a newly released drug in the context of their age, gender, comorbidities and/or co-medications. Communication of this independent risk information to prescribers has the potential to reduce adverse events in the period after the release of the new drug, which is when the risk is greatest.Note: The terms 'adverse drug reaction' and 'adverse drug event' have come to be used interchangeably in the current literature. For consistency, the authors have chosen to use the wider term 'adverse drug event' (ADE).

Child sexual abuse research: challenges of case tracking through administrative databases

Child sexual abuse has a serious impact on victims, their families and the broader community. As such, there is a critical need for sound research evidence to inform specialist responses. Increasingly, researchers are utilising administrative databases to track outcomes of individual cases across health, justice and other government agencies. There are unique advantages to this approach, including the ability to access a rich source of information at a population-wide level. However, the potential limitations of utilising administrative databases have not been fully explored. Because these databases were created originally for administrative rather than research purposes, there are significant problems with using this data at face value for research projects. We draw on our collective research experience in child sexual abuse to highlight common problems that have emerged when applying administrative databases to research questions. Some of the problems discussed include identification of relevant cases, ensuring reliability and dealing with missing data. Our article concludes with recommendations for researchers and policy-makers to enhance data quality.

The inventory centralization impacts on sustainability of the blood supply chain

This paper studies the significance of inventory centralization at the second echelon of a two-echelon supply chain with perishable items when the agents of the second echelon use an ( S − 1, S) inventory policy. The replenishment at the first echelon is considered to be stochastic. The context in which the studied problem exists is in the blood supply network where the first echelon includes a single blood bank that receives stochastic supply from donors. The second echelon contains hospitals receiving external demands (transfusions). In our proposed structure, some of the hospitals in close proximity of each other maintain centralized inventories to serve their demands in addition to the demands by other neighbour hospitals. The results demonstrate that centralization of hospitals’ inventory is a key factor in the blood supply chain and can increase the sustainability and resilient of the blood supply chain. Using numerical study, it was observed that reducing the number of hospitals that hold inventory from 7 to 3 decreases out date and shortage in the supply chain by 21% and 40% respectively. 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.