Benchmarking Safety Climate in Hazardous Environments: A Longitudinal, Interorganizational Approach

Safety climate is an important element of organizational reliability. This study applied benchmarking strategies for monitoring safety climate across nine North Sea oil and gas installations that were surveyed in consecutive years. Examination of absolute changes in safety climate complemented the benchmarking approach. Discriminant function analyses (DFA) identified the elements of safety climate predictive of self-reported accidents; correlational analyses were applied to the scale scores and accident proportions across the year period. Absolute improvements were substantial, with safety climate profiles converging in the second year. Large relative improvements were also observed. DFA highlighted perceived management commitment to safety and willingness to report accidents as significant predictors of personal accident involvement. Changes in perceived management commitment to safety were closely associated with changes in safety behavior.     

Semiparametric analysis of case series data

Summary.  The case series model for estimating the association between an age-dependent exposure and an outcome event requires information only on cases and implicitly adjusts for all age-independent multiplicative confounders, while allowing for an age-dependent base-line incidence. In the paper the model is presented in greater generality than hitherto, including more general discussion of its derivation, underlying assumptions, applicability, limitations and efficiency. A semiparametric version of the model is developed, in which the age-specific relative incidence is left unspecified. Modelling covariate effects and testing assumptions are discussed. The small sample performance of this model is studied in simulations. The methods are illustrated with several examples from epidemiology.     

Developing practice tools for social workers in end-of-life care

This article describes the National Association of Social Workers' (NASW) strategies for providing social workers with important practice and policy information about palliative and end-of-life care. With funding from a Soros Foundation's Project on Death in America grant, NASW developed practice standards, a Web-based continuing education course, and drafted a new policy statement to guide social workers in end-of-life care practice. The article provides an in-depth view of the development and scope of these resources for professional social workers.     

Estimating Distributions with Increasing Failure Rate in an Imperfect Repair Model

A failed system is repaired minimally if after failure, it is restored to the working condition of an identical system of the same age. We extend the nonparametric maximum likelihood estimator(MLE) of a systems lifetime distribution function to test units that are known to have an increasing failure rate. Such items comprise a significant portion of working components in industry. The order-restricted MLE is shown to be consistent. Similar results hold for the Brown-Proschan imperfect repair model, which dictates that a failed component is repaired perfectly with some unknown probability, and is otherwise repaired minimally. The estimators derived are motivated and illustrated by failure data in the nuclear industry. Failure times for groups of emergency diesel generators and motor-driven pumps are analyzed using the order-restricted methods. The order-restricted estimators are consistent and show distinct differences from the ordinary MLEs. Simulation results suggest significant improvement in reliability estimation is available in many cases when component failure data exhibit the IFR property.     

Out-migration from and return migration to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria: evidence from the consumer credit panel

Population and Environment - In this research brief, we contribute to a much-needed, initial, and growing inventory of data on Puerto Rican migration after Hurricane Maria. Using data from the...     

Social justice for safeguarded adults deprived of their liberty in the United Kingdom?

In March 2014 the UK Supreme Court overturned the Court of Appeal in two seminal co-joined cases (P v Cheshire West and Chester Council, P & Q v Surrey County Council [2014] UKSC 19). The implications of this co-joined judgement signify a wake-up call to all those involved in safeguarding adults at risk. It will dictate the proper test for determining what constitutes a deprivation of liberty, when an individual assessed as lacking mental capacity is required to reside at a particular place for the purpose of receiving care and treatment. This judgement provides essential and necessary protections for many thousands of adults, subject to high levels of restrictive practice, supervision and control.     

User Beware: Concerning Findings from the Post 2011–2012 U.S. Internal Revenue Service Migration Data

Population Research and Policy Review - The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) makes publicly and freely available period migration data at the state and county levels. Among their uses, these...