Benefit Cost Analysis of RD&E in Action

Since 2004, the Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries has embarked on a rigorous evaluation of its R&D Programs, with Benefit Cost Analysis being a cornerstone of this work. The analyses conducted to date have proved to be powerful tools in internal resource re-allocation. However, the process used has been time consuming, partly because there needs to be adequate time allowed for consultation both with scientists and with senior staff. Experience has highlighted the need for strong organisational support to the analysts carrying out the work.Benefit Cost Analysis, management, research and development, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

An examination of the influence of ICT on patient co-creation in healthcare service delivery at the micro level

This study provides an empirical perspective of the influence of online health information search on patient co-creation in healthcare service delivery at the micro level. The study primarily sheds light on the influence of information seeking on the clinical encounter process and how this cumulatively impacts on the expected service outcomes. The following research questions are addressed: 1. How do patients search for information and what motivates them to seek health related information? 2. What impact does online information seeking have on patients’ engagement in healthcare clinical encounters? 3. How is co-creation modeled in healthcare to ascertain the cumulative effects of ICT on the expected outcomes at the micro level

NASA/MSFC FY88 Global Scale Atmospheric Processes Research Program Review

Interest in environmental issues and the magnitude of the environmental changes continues. One way to gain more understanding of the atmosphere is to make measurements on a global scale from space. The Earth Observation System is a series of new sensors to measure globally atmospheric parameters. Analysis of satellite data by developing algorithms to interpret the radiance information improves the understanding and also defines requirements for these sensors. One measure of knowledge of the atmosphere lies in the ability to predict its behavior. Use of numerical and experimental models provides a better understanding of these processes. These efforts are described in the context of satellite data analysis and fundamental studies of atmospheric dynamics which examine selected processes important to the global circulation

Patient co-creation activities in healthcare service delivery at the micro level : The influence of online access to healthcare information

The healthcare sector has undergone a number of transformations in recent years, partly due to recent advances in technology. This triggered our study to examine patients’ desire to seek health information largely driven by increased access via the Internet and the cumulative impacts on value co-creation. We employed a sequential exploratory design involving a phenomenological approach in the qualitative phase, followed by a quantitative survey design to further our understanding of the influence of technology in co-creating value in healthcare at the micro level. Advances in technology have empowered patients to be informed, which enabled them to play an active role in clinical encounters with the doctor. The findings suggest pre-encounter information search impacts positively on improved service engagement and commitment to compliance with medical instructions. It does this by shaping the nature of interactions; enhancing provider-patient orientation; and increasing their involvement in a shared decision-making process. From a theoretical perspective, our study integrates multiple research perspectives (e.g., access to information, online information seeking and knowledge creation, healthcare consultation models, etc.) and extends research on patient integration, participation, and co-creation of value. The conceptualization of value co-creation activities in this study suggests a need for service providers to adopt delivery approaches that would effectively integrate patient resources to co-create value

Development of a New, Precise Near-infrared Doppler Wavelength Reference: A Fiber Fabry-Perot Interferometer

We present the ongoing development of a commercially available Micron Optics fiber-Fabry Perot Interferometer as a precise, stable, easy to use, and economic spectrograph reference with the goal of achieving <1 m/s long term stability. Fiber Fabry-Perot interferometers (FFP) create interference patterns by combining light traversing different delay paths. The interference creates a rich spectrum of narrow emission lines, ideal for use as a precise Doppler reference. This fully photonic reference could easily be installed in existing NIR spectrographs, turning high resolution fiber-fed spectrographs into precise Doppler velocimeters. First light results on the Sloan Digital Sky Survey III (SDSS-III) Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE) spectrograph and several tests of major support instruments are also presented. These instruments include a SuperK Photonics fiber supercontinuum laser source and precise temperature controller. A high resolution spectrum obtained using the NIST 2-m Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) is also presented. We find our current temperature control precision of the FFP to be 0.15 mK, corresponding to a theoretical velocity stability of 35 cm/s due to temperature variations of the interferometer cavity.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures. To appear in the proceedings of the SPIE 2012 Astronomical Instrumentation and Telescopes conferenc

Examining the service engagement process in value co-creation in healthcare service delivery : a multi-level perspective

This study furthers our understanding of value co-creation, which has received little attention in the doctor-patient encounter relationship. We employed a quantitative survey method to shed light on factors driving this fundamental service aspect, followed up with a multilevel data analysis. These factors (assurance, social skills, doctor-patient orientation) from the doctor significantly strengthen the effects of the patient-level factors (trust, perceptual beliefs, interactions) on the service engagement and outcomes of the focal doctorpatient dyad. We establish the cross-level interactive effects at the group level of the focal dyad on service engagement. The findings suggest service engagement at the group level had no significant effect on patients’ perceived value. We provide new empirical insights to understand and operationalize these fundamental influencing factors of the value co-creation concept in a healthcare setting, and contribute to the value co-creation literature