Earth mortars from pre-historic habitat settlements in south Portugal. Case studies

J. Iberian Archaeology 13 (2010), 51-67

The Portuguese Administrative Elite, 1851-1910

The aim of this article is to examine the composition and patterns of recruitment of the ministries’directors-general, as well as to assess the interconnections between bureaucracy and politics, from the beginnings of Regeneração (1851) until the breakdown of Monarchy (1910). The post of director-general was considered one of “political trust”, that might be filled by individuals from outside the civil service, and the selection and de-selection of officeholders depended exclusively on the ministers’ will. Nonetheless, most directors-general were experienced bureaucrats, boasting a steady career as civil servants, and remained in office for long terms, regardless of ministerial discontinuities. In other words, High Administration became relatively immune to party-driven politics. Due to their professional background and lengthy tenure, directors-general were usually highly skilled specialists, combining technical expertise and practical knowledge of the wheels of state bureaucracy. Hence, they were often influential actors in policy-making, playing an active (and sometimes decisive) part behind the scenes, in both designing and implementing government policies. As regards their social profile, directors-general formed a cohesive and homogeneous elite group: being predominantly drawn from urban middle class milieus, highly educated, and appointed to office in their forties.

Phlebotomine sandflies fauna (Diptera: Psychodidae) at rural settlements in the municipality of Cáceres, State of Mato Grosso, Brazil

INTRODUCTION: Leishmaniasis is expanding across Brazil, including the State of Mato Grosso (MT). The aim of this study was to characterize the phlebotomine sandfly fauna at threerural settlements located in the municipality of Cáceres, MT, from August 2010 to July 2011. METHODS: Sandfly captures were conducted at the forest border and in intra and peridomicile areas with automatic light traps, biweekly, from 5pm to 6am. RESULTS: Of the 630 sandflies collected, 348 were female, and 282 were male. Captured specimens were distributed across 11 genera - Brumptomyia, Evandromyia, Expapillata, Lutzomyia, Martinsmyia, Micropygomyia, Nyssomyia, Pintomyia, Psathyromyia, Psychodopygus, and Sciopemyia - and 28 species. Among these, six species had not been marked yet in MT (Brumptomyia avellari, Br. mangabeirai, Evandromyia aldafalcaoae, Micropygomyia echinatopharynx, Micropygomyia peresi, and Pa. campograndensis). Nyssomyia whitmani was the most abundant species across ecotopes at all settlements. Interestingly, Lutzomyia longipalpis and Lutzomyia cruzi were found in sympatry. CONCLUSIONS: The disorganized occupation of the environment that is happening at the rural settlements of Mata Comprida, Laranjeira I and II could provide opportunities for the domiciliation of wild populations of phlebotomine, including vectors of leishmaniasis. Therefore, more studies are needed to understand the epidemiology of the disease in these areas and its impact on the human population.

Creating the Gorizia-Goriska euroregion: an European cross-border administrative model for integrated socio-economic development in the upper adriatic. Crossborder co-operation as a tool for trans-national integration and conflict resolution

Contribució al Seminari: "Les Euroregions: Experiències i aprenatges per a l’Euroregió Pirineus-Mediterrània", 15-16 de desembre de 2005

Lessons of peace in Aceh: administrative decentralization and political freedom as a strategy of pacification in Aceh

This working paper shows the evolution of the Aceh conflict until its peaceful resolution in 2005. The key factors in the success of this peace process have been the confluence of several factors related to the internal and external dynamics of the country, including the new political leadership, the decreasing role of the military power, the international support and the meeting of the objectives of both groups, and so on. The end of the conflict in Aceh shows that the administrative decentralization and the promotion of the political participation of the main actors involved have made possible the development of a solid alternative to the arms strategy of conflict resolution used for years in Indonesia.

Trois cantons suisses face aux réformes. Une impossible séparation entre sphères politique et administrative?

Sur la base d'une enquête quantitative et qualitative auprès des hauts fonctionnaires et membres du Gouvernement des cantons du Valais, du Jura et de Neuchâtel, le présent article vise à tester l'hypothèse selon laquelle les réformes inspirées des principes de la nouvelle gestion publique conduisent à la redéfinition des relations entre acteurs politiques et administratifs. Autrement dit, l'introduction des réformes permettrait de séparer plus strictement les activités stratégiques des activités opérationnelles. Or, les constats que nous tirons de nos investigations rendent compte d'une certaine « stabilité » des relations politico-administratives, au-delà des différences constatées dans les stratégies de modernisation menées dans les trois entités cantonales. Des facteurs institutionnels, mais également politiques, peuvent expliquer cette stabilité. De sorte que nos résultats remettent en question la faisabilité et la légitimité d'une séparation entre sphères politique et administrative à un niveau de gouvernance cantonal en Suisse.

Report on the baseline measurement of the administrative burden from the Department of Health

The Irish Government in March 2008 set a target to identify measure and reduce the Administrative Burden (AB) of domestic regulation for businesses by 25% by the end of 2012 – on foot of a European Council invitation to all member states in March 2007. As part of a cross-Government process led by the Business Regulation Unit of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (DJEI), the Department of Health carried out a measurement exercise in 2012 on the main Information Obligations placed on business by legislation in the areas of Food, Nursing Homes and Pharmacy sectors.The AB baseline measurement for those information obligations is described in this report. Click here to download PDF 322KB  

Is hospital discharge administrative data an appropriate source of information for cancer registries purposes? Some insights from four Spanish registries

Background. The use of hospital discharge administrative data (HDAD) has been recommended for automating, improving, even substituting, population-based cancer registries. The frequency of false positive and false negative cases recommends local validation. Methods. The aim of this study was to detect newly diagnosed, false positive and false negative cases of cancer from hospital discharge claims, using four Spanish population-based cancer registries as the gold standard. Prostate cancer was used as a case study. Results. A total of 2286 incident cases of prostate cancer registered in 2000 were used for validation. In the most sensitive algorithm (that using five diagnostic codes), estimates for Sensitivity ranged from 14.5% (CI95% 10.3-19.6) to 45.7% (CI95% 41.4-50.1). In the most predictive algorithm (that using five diagnostic and five surgical codes) Positive Predictive Value estimates ranged from 55.9% (CI95% 42.4-68.8) to 74.3% (CI95% 67.0-80.6). The most frequent reason for false positive cases was the number of prevalent cases inadequately considered as newly diagnosed cancers, ranging from 61.1% to 82.3% of false positive cases. The most frequent reason for false negative cases was related to the number of cases not attended in hospital settings. In this case, figures ranged from 34.4% to 69.7% of false negative cases, in the most predictive algorithm. Conclusions. HDAD might be a helpful tool for cancer registries to reach their goals. The findings suggest that, for automating cancer registries, algorithms combining diagnoses and procedures are the best option. However, for cancer surveillance purposes, in those cancers like prostate cancer in which care is not only hospital-based, combining inpatient and outpatient information will be required.

E-government and Public Services : a Case Study of the Inter-administrative Portal CAT365. Research report (sythesis document)

Aquest estudi analitza els usos de les TIC a l'administració autonòmica catalana. De forma més específica, l'estudi se centra en la interacció entre l'ús d'un vessant concret de les TIC, la xarxa Internet, per part de l'administració pública, i determinats aspectes centrals d'aquest tipus d'institucions: la seva organització i estructura internes, la provisió de serveis públics o la relació amb altres agents socials. Hem analitzat, doncs, el fenomen del govern electrònic en el marc particular de la Generalitat de Catalunya, estudiant-ne el grau de desenvolupament i penetració, les seves característiques més remarcables i els problemes més importants que s'hi plantegen. El projecte de recerca es concreta en un estudi de cas sobre un projecte d'innovació específic però de gran abast, que es trobava en el moment de realització de l'estudi en la seva primera fase d'implementació: el projecte Administració Oberta de Catalunya (AOC). Concretament ens hem centrat en el vessant d'aquesta iniciativa pública que es concretava en la creació d'un portal interadministratiu a Internet, el portal www.cat365.net, destinat a proveir electrònicament serveis públics de totes les administracions que operen a Catalunya. L'estudi analitza les transformacions internes de l'administració que s'hi poden trobar associades i els elements que les condicionen, tant positivament com negativa. Igualment, intentem analitzem el que aquestes transformacions poden suposar per a la relació entre els ciutadans i les institucions públiques.

Lien entre durée de séjour et réadmissions en chirurgie et en obstétrique: étude de deux procédures à partir des données du PMSI = Using administrative data to assess the impact of length of stay on readmissions: study of two procedures in surgery and obstetrics

Position du problème: La mise en place de la tarification à l'activité pour les hôpitaux de court séjour pourrait entraîner une diminution des durées de séjour pour raisons financières. L'impact potentiel de ce phénomène sur la qualité des soins n'est pas connu. Les réadmissions identifiées à l'aide des données administratives hospitalières sont, pour certaines situations cliniques, des indicateurs de qualité des soins valides. Méthode: Étude rétrospective du lien entre la durée de séjour et la survenue de réadmissions imprévues liées au séjour initial, pour les cholécystectomies simples et les accouchements par voie basse sans complication, à partir des données du programme de médicalisation des systèmes d'information de l'Assistance publique-Hôpitaux de Paris des années 2002 à 2005. Résultats: Pour les deux procédures, la probabilité de réadmission suit une courbe en " J ". Après ajustement sur l'âge, le sexe, les comorbidités associées, l'hôpital et l'année d'admission, la probabilité de réadmission est plus élevée pour les durées de séjour les plus courtes : pour les cholécystectomies, odds ratio : 6,03 [IC95 % : 2,67-13,59] pour les hospitalisations d'un jour versus trois jours ; pour les accouchements, odds ratio : 1,74 [IC95 % : 1,05-2,91] pour les hospitalisations de deux jours versus trois jours. Conclusion: Pour deux pathologies communes, les durées de séjour les plus courtes sont associées à des probabilités de réadmission plus élevées. L'utilisation routinière des données du programme de médicalisation des systèmes d'information peut permettre d'assurer le suivi de la relation entre la réduction de la durée de séjour et les réadmissions. The prospective payment system for the French short-stay hospitals creates a financial incentive to reduce length of stay. The potential impact of the resulting decrease in length of stay on the quality of healthcare is unknown. Readmission rates are valid outcome indicators for some clinical procedures. Methods: Retrospective study of the association between length of stay and unplanned readmissions related to the initial stay, for two procedures: cholecystectomy and vaginal delivery. Data: Administrative diagnosis-related groups database of "Assistance publique-Hopitaux de Paris", a large teaching hospital, for years 2002 to 2005. Results: The risk of readmission according to length of stay, taking age, sex, comorbidity, hospital and year of admission into account, followed a J-shaped curve for both procedures. The probability of readmission was higher for very short stays, with odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals of 6.03 [2.67-13.59] for cholecystectomies (1- versus 3-night stays), and of 1.74 [1.05-2.91] for vaginal deliveries (2- versus 3-night stays). Conclusion: For both procedures, the shortest lengths of stay are associated with a higher readmission probability. Suitable indicators derived from administrative databases would enable monitoring of the association between length of stay and readmissions.