From customer orientation to customer satisfaction : the gap between theory and practice

2003-2004 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe

From customer orientation to customer satisfaction: The gap between theory and practice

The classical quality management theory suggests that different quality improvement practices have a similar positive effect on overall operational efficiency, leading to customer satisfaction. Based on a study of 225 organizations in the electronics industry in Hong Kong, we find that individual quality improvement practice has a specific effect on operational performance, rather than equally improving the overall operational efficiency. Our investigations indicate that customer orientation practices primarily affect time-based efficiency, while process improvement efforts help cost-related performance. On the other hand, emphasizing process-control systems leads to customer satisfaction directly without necessarily improving operations. While supporting the basic assertions of the classical quality management theory, these findings reveal that several problems exist in the practice of quality management in industry, and suggest that a re-direction of several quality management practices seems necessary. This research refines the understanding of quality management by explicating the specific effect of customer orientation and process management on organizational performance.published_or_final_versio

Correlation of influenza infection with glycan array

Poster Presentation: SPB1 / SPB2 - Virus Host Interaction/Pathogensis/Transmission: abstract no. B109PINTRODUCTION: The past 6 years has seen the introduction of glycan arrays containing large numbers of sialic acid (Sia) containing compounds and these arrays have been used to demonstrate the relative binding affinity of influenza viruses to different glycans. Though infor...postprin

Absence of Kaposi's sarcoma associated herpesvirus-like DNA sequences (KSHV) in HIV-negative multicentric Castleman's disease complicated by KSHV-positive Kaposi's sarcoma [9]

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Bladder tumours in Chinese: A 6 year study

Specimens from 334 Chinese patients who underwent surgical treatment for bladder tumours over a 6 year period were studied retrospectively. Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) accounted for 91.3% of all the bladder tumours. The male to female ratio was 3:1 and the mean age was 69 years. Papillary TCC, which represented 67.5% of all TCC, were more often of a lower grade compared to non-papillary tumours. The staging of tumours was done for the 102 cystectomy specimens with TCC only. Among these, 28% were superficial while 72% were muscle-invasive and the papillary TCC usually presented at an earlier stage. Infiltration into the prostate gland was identified in 11% of male patients while coexisting adenocarcinoma of the prostate was observed in another 4.2%. Other types of carcinoma were uncommon. Squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma and small cell carcinoma accounted for 2.7, 1.8 and 0.6% of all bladder tumours, respectively. A rare case of sarcomatoid carcinoma was also found, but no true sarcoma was documented in this series. Benign lesions included five inverted papillomas, three nephrogenic adenomas, two paragangliomas and one haemangioma.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Odontogenic keratocysts: a clinicopathological study in Hong Kong Chinese.

Objective: To analyze the clinicopathological features of odontogenic keratocysts in Chinese patients. Study Design: Retrospective analysis. Methods: The clinical records and pathological features of odontogenic keratocysts from 69 ethnic Hong Kong Chinese patients (40 male and 29 female patients) were reviewed. Results: The male-to-female ratio was 1.4:1; patient age ranged from 6 to 69 years with a modal peak in the third decade (mean age, 28 y; median age, 23 y). The preoperative diagnosis was correct in 78% of the cases and the most common misdiagnosis was dentigerous cyst. Sixty-two percent of the cysts were found in the mandible, and 38% in the maxilla. Multiple cysts occurred in 9% (including three cases of basal cell nevus syndrome). Histologically, 82.6%, 5.8%, and 11.6% of the cysts were parakeratinized, orthokeratinized, and mixed types, respectively. Patients with multiple cysts all showed parakeratinization. The majority (80%) of the cysts were lined by epithelia with a thickness of five to eight cells. Surface corrugation, subepithelial split, suprabasal split, satellite microcysts, epithelial islands, significant inflammation, hyaline bodies, and dystrophic calcification were present in 100%, 81%, 25%, 38%, 42%, 46%, 7%, and 10% of cysts, respectively. The overall recurrence rate was 24%, with a median time for first recurrence of 19 months (range, 1 mo-22 y). Cysts showing orthokeratinization or mixed types of keratinization recurred less often than parakeratinized cysts. Recurrence had the same type of keratinization as the initial cyst. Conclusions: Pathological examination of keratocysts is important, because keratocysts have different clinicopathological features and carry a risk for clinical misdiagnosis.Griffith Health FacultyNo Full Tex

Widespread skin-limited Langerhans cell histiocytosis: Complete remission with interferon alfa

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Giant adrenal lipoma: A report of two cases and review of the literature

Lipoma of the adrenal gland is extremely rare. We report two cases of adrenal lipomas, one in a 64-year-old female and the other a 78-year-old male. The sizes of these tumours (4.5 cm and 8 cm) were larger than those reported in the literature. Both cases were found incidentally, one at autopsy and the other during ultrasonographic examination for unrelated condition. The histogenesis, clinicopathological features, differential diagnosis and management of these cases are discussed.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Primary CD30-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma of the lip

We report a case of primary CD30-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma of the lip. While extranodal involvement is not uncommon in Ki-1 (CD30) anaplastic large cell lymphoma, this is the first reported case of primary lip involvement. The clinical features and clinical outcome in Ki-1 anaplastic large cell lymphoma are discussed.link_to_subscribed_fulltex