bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The value of HR in times of change
Authors: Hennessy Jo , McCartney Claire 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThis paper sets out to explore the value of HR in times of change, providing an overview of current organizational change issues and against this backdrop exploring perceptions and requirements of the HR function. It also seeks to look at the important role that HR can play in taking the lead in talent management activities that can help to secure future organizational sustainability.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through Roffey Park's annual The Management Agenda survey, which encompasses a sample of 500 UK managers across a wide range of sectors, organizational sizes and national/international structures. Further organizational data was collected for two case studies; the latter case study on talent management was taken from The Talent Management Journey.FindingsThe paper offers a number of practical recommendations for HR professionals. These include that HR needs to be flexible to both changing business and people requirements; focus attention on customer needs and delivering value; and work in partnership with various stakeholders to ensure successful talent management processes.Originality/valueThe paper is based on original Roffey Park research, both The Management Agenda survey, now in its 11th year, and Roffey Park's The Talent Management Journey research guide. It translates the research findings into practical implications for HR professionals and organizations in times of change.
Surviving change
Authors: Leahy Lynn , Chamberlain Neal 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThis paper seeks to investigate change, why and how people react as they do to change, how to manage some of fheir reactions to change – such as stress and individual drivers – and how their career anchors come into play.Design/methodology/approachThe first author examines the way people react to change and the techniques that can be adopted for better personal management. The second author provides a case study of how the organization worked with Oakridge Training and Consulting when it was facing major internal restructuring and outsourcing and achieved a successful outcome from this major change scenario.FindingsUnilever outlines the outcomes of a workshop program delivered across 19 countries to 1,600 people. The workshops received consistent positive feedback from across all participating countries and research showed that there was a positive upturn in the perception of how Unilever Europe IT delivers change within the business.Originality/valueThe paper moves away from the process and elements of change to focus on the individual and offers practical tools that HR professionals can apply in a change environment that acknowledge individual needs and differences.
Preparing the organization for change
Authors: Neal Andy 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThis paper aims to draw on ChangeMaker's 20 years' experience of helping organizations around the world through a variety of organizational change processes. It aims to identify the role that HR can play to maximize the value of business transformations and motivate and retain key people.Design/methodology/approachThe paper offers best practice advice based on ChangeMaker's experience in the field and analyzes three major change situations in order to identify the best practice approaches used in each.FindingsHR needs to be involved on a strategic level from the start of any organizational change in order to influence and promote the development of the necessary people policies to gain full value from the process. This can range from working with the CEO or top team to encourage them to communicate a clear and consistent message with passion and enthusiasm to developing programmes to assist staff through the change process.Originality/valueHR needs to take a bold approach in terms of encouraging a top‐level focus on people policies and support, asking questions to ascertain the true requirements of the transformation, analyzing capability – including leadership capability – in the light of a changing business environment and being open and honest about any job losses or transfers.
Some support policy options for cotton in China
Authors: Martin William 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the economic arguments for and against raising the tariff on imports of cotton into China.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews first the possible arguments for raising the tariff, and particularly the possibility that such an increase in tariffs would have a favorable distributional effect by redistributing from those involved in the production of textiles and clothing to the producers of cotton. The core analysis of the paper examines the policies in place using descriptions of policies and interviews with policymakers. It also assembles statistics designed to assess the export status of cotton, whether in raw or processed form.FindingsThe paper reviews the situation with respect to WTO commitments and confirms that such an increase, up to 40 percent, would be permitted under WTO rules. The paper then examines other constraints on the effective use of such higher tariffs on cotton. Policies that are better than tariff increases in dealing with the serious problems of rural incomes are identified.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper is unable to assess the distributional impacts of an increase in the tariff on cotton. It raises a number of cautions about the issues that need to be confronted in making such an assessment.Originality/valueThe issue of raising the tariff on cotton has been a subject of intense debate in China and this paper is intended to provide an input into this debate. The paper agrees that urgent action is clearly needed to mitigate the poverty problems in rural China, but concludes that a number of policy options appear likely to be more effective in dealing with these problems than protection of cotton.
Promotion of dairy farming and poverty reduction in Inner Mongolia, China
Authors: Dagula  , Kiminami Lily 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purposes of this paper are to examine the actual conditions of the problems of poverty in rural areas in Inner Mongolia, to clarify the problems involved in the measure to fight poverty through promotion of dairy farming and to propose policies for future measures to fight poverty.Design/methodology/approachBoth quantitative and qualitative analyses are employed, such as the estimation of production functions of agriculture in Inner Mongolia over the period 1998‐2004, the interview analysis and questionnaire survey for case studies. The different roles that three models play in poverty reduction such as the government assistant dairy farming, the enterprise entry dairy farming, and the multiple management dairy farming are discussed.FindingsThe paper confirms the growth of the corporate‐participating dairy farming contributes significantly to the development of the regions. It also clarifies the problem of the government‐aided dairy farming with its low profitability caused by insufficient input of fodder and the necessity to select management policies according to the natural conditions and resources available in individual regions, such as a shift toward recycling‐oriented beef cattle management in multiple dairy farming.Originality/valueThe paper adds insight into the promotion of dairy farming and poverty reduction in Inner Mongolia.
Thought and practice of sustainable development in Chinese traditional agriculture
Authors: Genpan Li 
Published: October 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that the sustainable development thought is one good reason why Chinese civilization is continuously developing, and it can be used as a reference for the development of Chinese agriculture today.Design/methodology/approachThe paper employs a historical analysis approach to examine the sustainable thoughts concerning Chinese traditional agriculture, including view of sancai, farming season, fertility, the nature of matters, recycling, and economization.FindingsThe results reveal that the nature of Chinese traditional agriculture is akin to ecological agriculture, which is precious heritage for China and the whole world.Originality/valueThe originality of this paper is that it confirms the fundamental reason of the continuous development of Chinese civilization which, based on organization of sustainable development thought, lies in traditional agriculture.
Sustained modulation of intestinal bacteria by exclusive enteral nutrition used to treat children with Crohn’s disease
Authors: LEACH S. T. , MITCHELL H. M. , ENG W. R. , ZHANG L. , DAY A. S. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  The use of exclusive enteral nutrition to treat paediatric Crohn’s disease (CD) is widely accepted, although the precise mechanism(s) of action remains speculative.Aim  To investigate the changes to key intestinal bacterial groups of Eubacteria, Bacteroides, Clostridium coccoides, Clostridium leptum and Bifidobacteria, during and after exclusive enteral nutrition treatment for CD in paediatric patients and correlate these changes to disease activity and intestinal inflammation.Methods  Stool was collected from six children at diagnosis of CD, during exclusive enteral nutrition and 4 months post‐therapy, and from seven healthy control children. The diversity of bacteria was assessed by polymerase chain reaction‐denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis with changes to bacterial diversity measured by Bray–Curtis similarity, intestinal inflammation assessed by faecal S100A12 and the disease activity assessed by PCDAI.Results  A significantly greater change in intestinal bacterial composition was seen with exclusive enteral nutrition treatment compared with controls. Further, the intestinal bacteria remained altered 4 months following exclusive enteral nutrition completion. Changes in the composition of Bacteroides were associated with reduced disease activity and inflammation.Conclusions  Exclusive enteral nutrition reduces bacterial diversity and initiates a sustained modulation of all predominant intestinal bacterial groups. Exclusive enteral nutrition may reduce inflammation through modulating intestinal Bacteroides species. The implications of these results for exclusive enteral nutrition therapy and CD pathogenesis should now be the subject of further investigation.
Combination testing for antibodies in the diagnosis of coeliac disease: comparison of multiplex immunoassay and ELISA methods
Authors: RASHTAK S. , ETTORE M. W. , HOMBURGER H. A. , MURRAY J. A. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Tissue transglutaminase (TTG) antibodies and newly developed deamidated gliadin peptide (DGP) antibodies have better accuracy than native gliadin antibodies. Multiplex immunoassay (MIA) measures multiple antibodies simultaneously providing a complete antibody phenotype with reduced turnaround time and cost.Aim  To evaluate the agreement between MIA and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test results for coeliac antibodies in biopsy‐proven coeliac patients and controls and to model the diagnostic utility of combination testing.Methods  We compared the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of MIA and ELISA methods for TTG and DGP antibodies in mainly adult untreated coeliac patients (n = 92) and controls (n = 124).Results  There was excellent agreement and a significant correlation between the results of MIA and ELISA methods (κ > 0.8, r > 0.7) for all tests, except TTG IgG. Diagnostic indices of individual and combination tests measured by the MIA method did not differ significantly from those measured by ELISA. The combination tests slightly increased sensitivity (if any test was positive) and specificity (if all tests were positive) compared to the individual tests.Conclusions  Multiplex immunoassay testing for antibodies is as accurate as ELISA for coeliac disease diagnosis and has practical advantages over ELISA method. Rational combination testing can help identify patients who need intestinal biopsy and may reduce unnecessary biopsies.
Insulin resistance is a major determinant of sustained virological response in genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C patients receiving peginterferon α‐2b plus ribavirin
Authors: CHU C.‐J. , LEE S.‐D. , HUNG T.‐H. , LIN H.‐C. , HWANG S.‐J. , LEE F.‐Y. , LU R.‐H. , YU M.‐I. , CHANG C.‐Y. , YANG P.‐L. , LEE C.‐Y. , CHANG F.‐Y. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Cross‐sectional studies suggest insulin resistance is strongly associated with hepatic steatosis and fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC), which might affect the efficacy of antiviral therapy.Aim  To investigate retrospectively the impact of insulin resistance on treatment response in Chinese genotype 1 CHC patients receiving a 24‐week course therapy with peginterferon α‐2b/ribavirin.Methods  A total of 133 biopsy‐proven CHC patients were enrolled for analyses. Insulin resistance was evaluated by homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR). Hepatic fibrosis was graded by the METAVIR scoring system.Results  Mean HOMA‐IR progressively elevated along with the severity of hepatic fibrosis (F1–F2 fibrosis: 2.55 ± 0.16 vs. F3–F4 fibrosis: 3.61 ± 0.20, P < 0.001). Compared with patients with sustained virological response (SVR), patients without SVR had significantly higher percentages of F3–F4 fibrosis (62.2% vs. 21.6%, P < 0.001) and baseline high viral load (≥600 000 IU/mL; 64.4% vs. 35.6%, P = 0.038). In addition, patients without SVR had significantly higher plasma levels of insulin (15.03 ± 0.89 vs. 10.19 ± 0.55 μU/mL, P < 0.001) and HOMA‐IR values (3.76 ± 0.23 vs. 2.50 ± 0.15, P < 0.001). Multivariate analyses showed that F1–F2 fibrosis (odds ratio: 4.49, P = 0.001), HOMA‐IR < 2 (odds ratio: 7.15, P = 0.005) and pre‐treatment hepatitis C virus RNA < 600 000 IU/mL (odds ratio: 3.26, P = 0.012) were the independent factors associated with SVR.Conclusions  Insulin resistance is a major determinant of SVR in genotype 1 CHC patients receiving peginterferon α‐2b/ribavirin. Strategies to modify insulin resistance may be effective in enhancing SVR before or during anti‐viral therapy.
Assessment of asymptomatic liver fibrosis in alcoholic patients using fibroscan: prospective comparison with seven non‐invasive laboratory tests
Authors: NGUYEN‐KHAC E. , CHATELAIN D. , TRAMIER B. , DECROMBECQUE C. , ROBERT B. , JOLY J.‐P. , BREVET M. , GRIGNON P. , LION S. , LE PAGE L. , DUPAS J.‐L. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Systematic screening for liver fibrosis in heavy‐drinking patients is a challenge.Aims  To assess Fibroscan for non‐invasive diagnosis of asymptomatic liver fibrosis in alcohol abuse patients, to determine diagnostic liver stiffness cut‐off values and to compare performance of Fibroscan with seven non‐invasive laboratory tests.Methods  One hundred and three alcoholic patients were studied. Liver fibrosis was staged by METAVIR system. Fibroscan, Fibrotest, Fibrometer, Hepascore, APRI, PGA, PGAA and hyaluronic acid tests were performed. Liver stiffness cut‐offs were determined using receiver‐operating characteristic (ROC) curves.Results  Liver stiffness was correlated with fibrosis (r = 0.72, P < 0.014), with median at 5.7, 6.3, 8.4, 15 and 47.3 kPa for F0 (n = 8), F1 (n = 18), F2 (n = 24), F3 (n = 20) and F4 (n = 33) stage fibrosis respectively. For Fibroscan, areas under ROC curves (AUROCs) were 0.84 (95% CI: 0.73–0.95) (F ≥ 1), 0.91 (0.85–0.98) (F ≥ 2), 0.90 (0.82–0.97) (F ≥ 3) and 0.92 (0.87–0.98) (F = 4), yielding diagnostic stiffness cut‐offs of 5.9 (F ≥ 1), 7.8 (F ≥ 2), 11 (F ≥ 3) and 19.5 (F4) kPa. Sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 80%, 90.5%, 93% and 70% for F ≥ 2, and 85.7%, 84.2%, 68.6% and 87.9% for F = 4. Performance of Fibroscan was higher than seven laboratory tests, for which AUROCs ranged from 0.66 to 0.77 (F ≥ 1), from 0.54 to 0.82 (F ≥ 2), from 0.43 to 0.88 (F ≥ 3) and from 0.56 to 0.89 (F = 4), with significant difference only vs. APRI (P < 0.001) and Hepascore (P = 0.04). Combining Fibroscan with each tests did not improve performance.Conclusions  Fibroscan is effective to assess liver fibrosis in alcoholic patients. Instant screening of liver fibrosis in heavy drinkers is feasible without liver biopsy.
Clinical trial: gluten microchallenge with wheat‐based starch hydrolysates in coeliac disease patients – a randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study to evaluate safety
Authors: KAUKINEN K. , SALMI T. , COLLIN P. , HUHTALA H. , KÄRJÄ‐LAHDENSUU T. , MÄKI M. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Wheat‐based starch hydrolysates such as glucose syrups, dextrose and maltodextrins are found in more than 50% of European processed food. These products contain low amounts of residual gluten and it has been questioned whether they are safe for coeliac disease patients.Aim  To investigate whether coeliac disease patients can safely consume wheat‐based starch hydrolysate products.Methods  This randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, prospective follow‐up study involved 90 coeliac disease patients in remission randomized to consume glucose syrups, maltodextrins or placebo for 24 weeks. Small bowel mucosal morphology and inflammation, symptoms, coeliac serology and malabsorption laboratory data were evaluated at baseline and at the end of the study.Results  Daily ingestion of wheat‐based starch hydrolysates, glucose syrups and maltodextrins, had no deleterious effect on small‐bowel mucosal villous architecture or inflammation in coeliac disease patients when compared to the placebo group. Neither were there any significant differences in gastrointestinal symptoms, serology or malabsorption parameters after 24 weeks.Conclusions  Wheat‐based starch hydrolysates, glucose syrups and maltodextrins did not have harmful effect on coeliac disease patients. Coeliac patients can thus safely continue to consume these products.
Community‐based treatment for chronic hepatitis C in drug users: high rates of compliance with therapy despite ongoing drug use
Authors: WILKINSON M. , CRAWFORD V. , TIPPET A. , JOLLY F. , TURTON J. , SIMS E. , HEKKER M. , DALTON J. , MARLEY R. , FOSTER G. R. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Chronic hepatitis C infection is common in drug users. Treatment of injectors is possible under controlled conditions, but many have not yet been included in treatment programmes as there are concerns about their ability to comply with therapy. It is not known which factors influence compliance.Aim  To examine the hypothesis that active drug users would comply with anti‐viral therapy if treatment was delivered in a convenient manner.Methods  We established a community‐based treatment programme and offered anti‐viral therapy to all drug users who wanted it. Few pre‐treatment requirements were imposed and, by design, compliance with therapy was reviewed after 50 patients had completed treatment.Results  Of the 441 patients who were known to be HCV RNA positive and attended the specialist addiction services during the period of this study, eighty three patients considered therapy. Twenty patients did not undergo treatment: 14 declined and 6 had medical conditions that precluded it. In 60 episodes (58 patients) where treatment had been completed, compliance was greater than 80% and homelessness, active illicit drug use and pre‐treatment antidepressant therapy were not associated with noncompliance. In 25 of 49 treatment episodes that were assessed 6 months after treatment cessation, a sustained virological response (51%) was seen.Conclusion  Active drug users using illicit drugs can be successfully treated in community‐based clinics.
Changing perceptions and practices regarding aspirin, nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs, and cyclooxygenase‐2 selective nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs among US primary care providers
Authors: ELNACHEF N. , SCHEIMAN J. M. , FENDRICK A. M. , HOWDEN C. W. , CHEY W. D. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Our understanding of the benefits and risks of aspirin non steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) selective NSAIDs and gastro‐protective agents (GPAs) continues to expand.Aim  To assess the perceptions and practices of US primary care physicians (PCPs) regarding the use of aspirin, NSAIDs, COX‐2 selective NSAIDs and GPA.Methods  A 34‐question survey was administered to 1000 US PCPs via the internet. Questions addressed issues involving aspirin, NSAIDs, COX‐2 selective NSAIDs, and GPAs. Around 491 of 1000 PCPs had participated in a similar survey conducted in 2003.Results  Eighty‐five per cent of PCPs reported that >25% of their patients were taking aspirin for preventive reasons. Nineteen per cent performed a risk calculation when deciding whether to start aspirin for cardioprotection. Fifty‐four per cent recommended a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) for a patient with a recently healed ulcer who required ongoing aspirin. Thirty‐one per cent reported prescribing NSAIDs more often and 52% were more likely to recommend a GPA with an NSAID than in 2003. Although PCPs were less likely to recommend a COX‐2 selective NSAID compared to 2003, only 41% felt that rofecoxib increased cardiovascular risk. One‐third felt that celecoxib and traditional NSAIDs were associated with increased cardiac risk.Conclusion  This survey identified several areas of ongoing confusion regarding aspirin, NSAIDs, COX‐2 selective NSAIDs and GPAs, which should help direct future educational efforts regarding the benefits, risks and appropriate use of these agents.
Systematic review: adverse event reports for oral sodium phosphate and polyethylene glycol
Authors: BELSEY J. , EPSTEIN O. , HERESBACH D. 
Published: October 2008

SummaryBackground  Screening colonoscopy exposes healthy patients to the risk of serious adverse events associated with bowel preparation. Randomized controlled trials are not an effective method for evaluating this risk.Aim  To search published literature in order to characterize the risk of adverse events associated with oral polyethylene glycol (PEG) or sodium phosphate (NaP).Methods  A systematic review identified case reports of any serious events associated with PEG or NaP. Reports to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were also examined.Results  Fifty‐eight publications of significant events in 109 patients using NaP and 22 patients using PEG were identified. As the total number of prescriptions issued is unknown, rates for the two agents cannot be directly compared. Most commonly reported were electrolyte disturbances, renal failure and colonic ulceration for NaP and Mallory–Weiss tear, electrolyte disturbances and allergic reactions for PEG between January 2006 and December 2007; there were 171 cases of renal failure reported to the FDA following use of NaP and 10 following PEG.Conclusions  Adverse events following bowel preparation are uncommon, but potentially serious. Given that many of these patients are healthy individuals undergoing screening, the benefit/risk ratio must be carefully considered when deciding which preparation to prescribe in individual patients.