Teaching and learning production and operations management: the journey from identity crisis to a cross, disciplinary approach

Este artigo tem suas raízes em algumas questões relacionadas à "forma" e ao "conteúdo" do que nós, professores, ensinamos na área de Administração da Produção e Operações. Inicialmente, descrevo a evolução histórica desse campo no Brasil. Em seguida, discuto a crise de identidade que o campo está sofrendo. Com o objetivo de apresentar respostas para essa situação, apresento seis propostas para o desenvolvimento e consolidação do campo. Finalmente, descrevo uma iniciativa prática, envolvendo uma disciplina específica da área, ensinada para alunos de pós-graduação. Essa iniciativa enfatiza a "dimensão do conteúdo" (de uma abordagem técnico-operacional para uma abordagem estratégico-gerencial) como também a "dimensão da forma" (do foco no ensino para o foco no aprendizado). O sucesso dessa experiência em curso confirma a coerência da agenda proposta e induz futuros aperfeiçoamentos.

STRATEGIC DECISIONS OF FAMILY FIRMS ON CASH ACCUMULATION

ABSTRACTGiven the particular strengths, weaknesses, and peculiarities of family firms as well as the importance of liquidity in today’s marketplace, we analyze the distinct characteristics and strategies of family businesses related to the amount of cash a firm holds. We look beyond the traditional factors that influence decisions related to cash management to examine factors that are particularly important for family firms. Specifically, we outline the relevance of strategic decisions guided by family firms’ conservatism, flexibility, long-term view, and the active control that they have over family members. To our knowledge, no prior studies exist regarding family firms and their strategic adjustment of cash holding. Therefore, we investigate whether the ownership structure of the firm (through the presence of a controlling family) moderates decisions on cash holding. We found that family firms tend to accumulate cash for strategic reasons and as a result of their own idiosyncrasies. Thus, family firms can achieve optimal cash accumulation more efficiently than non-family firms.

Institutional Development for Good Governance: the role of intermediary NGOs in Pará state, Amazonia

The paper analyses the roles of intermediary NGOs for linkages between government and rural communities in carrying out socio-environmental development programs as a mean of institutional development for good governance. In particular, the paper focuses on the Proambiente program that was carried out in Pará State, Amazonia, Brazil. This program was the first experience of a socio-environmental development program in Brazilian Amazonia that took into account local communities' demands to link environmental conservation and small-scale family-based rural production. Methodologically, the research was based on qualitative analysis and used semi-structured interviews for data collection. The paper shows that NGOs as intermediaries between government and rural communities is a significant mechanism to promote the strengthening of the power of local communities, to create bridges between federal government and local communities; and to stimulate participatory processes by engaging rural communities' culture and knowledge in socio-environmental development program as Proambiente.

Accountability and co-production of information and control: social observatories and their relationship with government agencies

Abstract:Through the development of a proposal to categorize accountability into four stages - classical, cross-sectional, systemic, and diffused -, this article aims to identify characteristics of co-production of information and socio-political control of public administration in the work of Brazilian social observatories in relationship with government control agencies. The study analyses data from 20 social observatories and, particularly, three experiences of co-production of information and control, based on a systemic perspective on accountability and a model with four categories: Political and cultural; valuing; systemic-organizational, and production. The conclusions summarize characteristics of these practices, specific phases in the accountability processes, as well as the potentialities and challenges of co-production of information and control, which not only influences, but it is also influenced by the accountability system.

Family expectation, social adjustment and gender differences in a sample of schizophrenic patients

A case series to study factors related to family expectation regarding schizophrenic patients was conducted in an out-patient setting in the city of S. Paulo, Brazil. Patients diagnosed as presenting schizophrenia by the ICD 9th Edition and having had the disease for more than four years were included in the study. Family Expectation was measured by the difference between the Katz Adjustment Scale (R2 and R3) scores based on the relative's expectation and the socially expected activities of the patient (Discrepancy Score), and social adjustment was given by the DSM-III-R Global Assessment Scale (GAS) . Outcome assessments were made independently, and 44 patients comprised the sample (25 males and 19 females). The Discrepancy mean score was twice as high for males as for females (p < 0.02), and there was an inverse relationship between the discrepancy score and social adjustment (r =-0.46, p < 0.001). Moreover, sex and social adjustment exerted independent effects on the discrepancy score when age, age at onset and number of psychiatric admissions were controlled by means of a multiple regression technique. There was an interaction between sex and social adjustment, the inverse relationship between social adjustment and discrepancy score being more pronounced for males. These findings are discussed in the light of the potential association between the family environment, gender and social adjustment of schizophrenic patients, and the need for further research, i.e. ethnographic accounts of interactions between patient and relatives sharing households particularly in less developed countries.

Mental health and psychiatry research in Brazil: scientific production from 1999 to 2003

OBJECTIVE: To assess the extent of mental health scientific production in Brazil from 1999 to 2003, and to identify the nature of the publications generated, their sources of finance and the ways of publicly disseminating the research findings. METHODS: Searches for publications were conducted in the Medline and PsychInfo databases for the period 1999-2003. A semi-structured questionnaire developed by an international team was applied to 626 mental health researchers, covering each interviewee's educational background, research experience, access to funding sources, public impact and research priorities. The sample was composed by 626 mental health researchers identified from 792 publications indexed on Medline and PsychInfo databases for the period above, and from a list of reviewers of Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria. RESULTS: In Brazil, 792 publications were produced by 525 authors between 1999 and 2003 (441 indexed in Medline and 398 in the ISI database). The main topics were: depression (29.1%), substance misuse (14.6%), psychoses (10%), childhood disorders (7%) and dementia (6.7%). Among the 626 Brazilian mental health researchers, 329 answered the questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: There were steadily increasing numbers of Brazilian articles on mental health published in foreign journals from 1999 to 2003: the number of articles in Medline tripled and it doubled in the ISI database. The content of these articles corresponded to the priorities within mental health, but there is a need for better interlinking between researchers and mental health policymakers.

Versão em português da Family Environment Scale: aplicação e validação

OBJETIVO: Traduzir a Escala do Ambiente Familiar (Family Environment Scale) para a língua portuguesa e aplicar o instrumento para sua validação. MÉTODOS: A tradução foi aplicada a membros de famílias brasileiras, visando avaliação da consistência interna e a concordância entre membros da mesma família. Foram selecionados 154 voluntários não sujeitos a qualquer intervenção para lidar com problemas familiares, residentes na cidade de São Paulo, em 2003. As pontuações médias nas dez subescalas do instrumento foram comparadas entre homens e mulheres e entre membros da mesma família. Avaliou-se a consistência interna pelo alfa de Cronbach. RESULTADOS: A pontuação máxima possível era nove em cada subescala (bom funcionamento familiar), exceto em relação a conflito e controle. Na maioria das subescalas, a pontuação média da amostra estudada esteve entre 5,1 e 7,6 (homens) e entre 5,4 e 7,7 (mulheres). Nas subescalas conflito e controle as médias variaram entre 1,8 e 4,6 (homens) e entre 1,6 e 4,6 (mulheres), sendo semelhantes às relatadas em estudos internacionais, exceto maior pontuação nas subescalas coesão e organização, e menor na subescala conflito. Não houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre as pontuações atingidas por homens e mulheres. A confiabilidade da escala avaliada pelo alfa de Cronbach variou entre 0,61 e 0,78 para as dez subescalas. CONCLUSÕES: Fatores culturais podem ter influenciado os resultados obtidos em algumas subescalas. A versão em português da Escala do Ambiente Familiar apresentou razoável consistência interna que permite sua utilização para avaliar alterações no ambiente ou funcionamento familiar, e após intervenções terapêuticas.

Oral health in the family health strategy: a change of practices or semantics diversionism

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate public health dentistry practices of two different family health models. METHODS: Qualitative study conducted with data obtained from focus groups consisting of 58 dentists working in the Family Health Strategy for at least three years between August-October, 2006. The Paideia Family Health Approach was used in the city of Campinas and the Oral Health Initiative as part of the Family Health Strategy was implemented in the city of Curitiba, Southeastern and Southern Brazil, respectively. Data was analyzed using the hermeneutic-dialectic method. Analysis indicators were employed to indicate backwardness, stagnation or progress in oral health practices effective from the implementation of the strategies referred. The indicators used were: work process; interdisciplinary approach; territorialization; capacity building of human resources; health promotion practices; and responsiveness to users' demands. RESULTS: There was progress in user access to services, humanization of health care, patient welcoming and patient-provider relationship. The results related to health promotion practices, territorialization, interdisciplinary approach and resource capacity building indicated a need for technical and operational enhancements in both cities. CONCLUSIONS: Both models have brought about important advances in terms of increased access to services and humanization of health care. Universal access to oral health at all levels of complexity was not achieved in both cities studied. Local health managers and oral health program coordinators must bring more weight to bear in the arena that defines public policy priorities.

Payment for performance in the Family Health Programme: lessons from the UK Quality and Outcomes Framework

OBJECTIVE: Payment for performance financial incentive schemes reward doctors based on the quality and the outcomes of their treatment. In Brazil, the Ministry of Health is looking to scale up its use in public hospitals and some municipalities are developing payment for performance schemes even for the Family Health Programme. In this article the Quality and Outcomes Framework used in the UK since 2004 is discussed, as well as its experience to elaborate some important lessons that Brazilian municipalities should consider before embarking on payment for performance scheme in primary care settings.

Professional and community satisfaction with the Brazilian family health strategy

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the strengths and limitations of the Family Health Strategy from the perspective of health care professionals and the community. METHODS: Between June-August 2009, in the city of Vespasiano, Minas Gerais State, Southeastern Brazil, a questionnaire was used to evaluate the Family Health Strategy (ESF) with 77 healthcare professionals and 293 caregivers of children under five. Health care professional training, community access to health care, communication with patients and delivery of health education and pediatric care were the main points of interest in the evaluation. Logistic regression analysis was used to obtain odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals as well as to assess the statistical significance of the variables studied. RESULTS: The majority of health care professionals reported their program training was insufficient in quantity, content and method of delivery. Caregivers and professionals identified similar weaknesses (services not accessible to the community, lack of healthcare professionals, poor training for professionals) and strengths (community health worker-patient communications, provision of educational information, and pediatric care). Recommendations for improvement included: more doctors and specialists, more and better training, and scheduling improvements. Caregiver satisfaction with the ESF was found to be related to perceived benefits such as community health agent household visits (OR 5.8, 95%CI 2.8;12.1), good professional-patient relationships (OR 4.8, 95%CI 2.5;9.3), and family-focused health (OR 4.1, 95%CI 1.6;10.2); and perceived problems such as lack of personnel (OR 0.3, 95%CI 0.2;0.6), difficulty with access (OR 0.2, 95%CI 0.1;0.4), and poor quality of care (OR 0.3, 95%CI 0.1;0.6). Overall, 62% of caregivers reported being generally satisfied with the ESF services. CONCLUSIONS: Identifying the limitations and strengths of the Family Health Strategy from the healthcare professional and caregiver perspective may serve to advance primary community healthcare in Brazil.

Screening for depressive symptoms in older adults in the Family Health Strategy, Porto Alegre, Brazil

OBJECTIVE To analyze the prevalence of depression in older adults and associated factors. METHODS Cross-sectional study using a stratified random sample of 621 individuals aged ≥ 60 from 27 family health teams in Porto Alegre, RS, Southern Brazil, between 2010 and 2012. Community health agents measured depression using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale. Scores of ≥ 6 were considered as depression and between 11 and 15 as severe depression. Poisson regression was used to search for independent associations of sociodemographic and self-perceived health with both depression and its severity. RESULTS The prevalence of depression was 30.6% and was significantly higher in women (35.9% women versus 20.9% men, p < 0.001). The variables independently associated with depression were: female gender (PR = 1.4, 95%CI 1.1;1.8); low education, especially illiteracy (PR = 1.8, 95%CI 1.2;2 6); regular self-rated health (OR = 2.2, 95%CI 1.6;3.0); and poor/very poor self-rated health (PR = 4.0, 95%CI 2.9;5.5). Except for education, the strength of association of these factors increases significantly in severe depression. CONCLUSIONS A high prevalence of depression was observed in the evaluations conducted by community health agents, professionals who are not highly specialized. The findings identified using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale in this way are similar to those in the literature, with depression more associated with low education, female gender and worse self-rated health. From a primary health care strategic point of view, the findings become still more relevant, indicating that community health agents could play an important role in identifying depression in older adults.

Production of Shistosoma mansoni cercariae by Biomphalaria glabrata from a focus in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais

The snail density, levels of infection and the monthly production of Schistosoma mansoni cercariae by Biomphalaria glabrata were determined in a focus of Barreiro de Baixo (Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil). During a period of 38 months (1984 to 1987) 5,366 snails were collected of which 324 (6.03%) were infected with S. mansoni. The total number of cercariae shed was 5,667,312. Each snail shed an average of 17,422 cercariae during the time that it was under study in the laboratory. The greatest longevity of infected snails was 218 days. Natural cure was observed in 42 (12.9%) of the infected specimens about 130 days after collection. The average snail density in the focus during the period of study was 16.3 snails per scoop. The shedding of cercariae by snails collected from the field was compared with laboratory bred specimens infected in mass with the LE strain of S. mansoni from Belo Horizonte. The laboratory infected snails shed an average of 6,061 cercariae each, a value 2.8 times less than the field specimens due to a shorter life span. The prevalence of schistosomiasis in the focus was 14.3%.

Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for rubella antibodies: a simple method of antigen production. A preliminary report

A simple method of rubella antigen production by treatment with sodium desoxycholate for use in enzyme immunoassay (IMT-ELISA) is presented. When this assay was compared with a commercial test (Enzygnost-Rubella, Behring), in the study of 108 sera and 118 filter paper blood samples, 96.9% (219/226) overall agreement and correlation coefficient of 0.90 between absorbances were observed. Seven samples showed discordant results, negative by the commercial kit and positive by our test. Four of those 7 samples were available, being 3 positive by HI.

Four adult hemoglobin types in one mulatto family

The studied family showed the presence of four different types of hemoglobin. The family member who gave rise to this study (=propositus) presented Hb C and the hybrid Hb CG-phila. The propositus has three children, all of which have Hb AC; none of the family members showed any clinical symptoms. The investigation of the hemoglobin arose from the finding of target red cells in a blood test done during the pre-operatory examination for lower limb varicose vein stripping. The hybrid Hb CG-phila is due to two gene pairs, each of which with individual expression, determining the synthesis and the particular type subunits. The hybrid Hb CG-phila is formed by the combination velocity of the subunits alpha2G-philabeta2; therefore the proportion of the hybrid Hb CG-phila is lower than Hb G-phila and Hb C. The identification and molecular characterization of Hb G-phila showed the position alpha268 Asn->Lys beta2 and Hb C showed alpha2beta26 Glu->Lys.