Effective inter-agency collaboration to safeguard children: Rising to the challenge through collective development

Multidisciplinary strategic collaborations are becoming increasingly commonplace. This is particularly evident in relation to safeguarding children. However, whilst there is a growing body of literature on both the effective leadership of collaborations and child protection there is little that combines the two. This means that senior managers, who are members of safeguarding partnerships, have a limited evidence-base to inform their collective learning and development. This paper seeks to add to the body of knowledge by first exploring both the literature on strategic collaboration and considering the implications for safeguarding partnerships. Second, by making an argument, that in order for members to engage in the effective joint leadership of collaborations they require opportunities for reflection and ongoing collective development. Third, providing an example of a way in which this can be achieved through the use of a self-assessment and improvement tool. Finally, considering the lessons learnt from the development of such a tool, focusing specifically on the implications for members of partnerships addressing complex problems such as the multifaceted issues associated with child maltreatment.     

Effect of audit and feedback on the availability, utilisation and quality of emergency obstetric care in three districts in Malawi

BACKGROUND: Facility-based maternal death reviews and criterion-based clinical audit, were introduced in three districts in Malawi in 2006. RESEARCH QUESTION: Can audit and feedback improve the availability, utilisation and quality of emergency obstetric care (EmOC)? PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Observational study in which emergency obstetric care offered to women who gave birth in 73 health facilities (13 hospitals and 60 health centres) in three districts in Malawi in 2005 (baseline, 41,637 women) was compared to 2006 (43,729 women) and 2007 (51,085 women). RESULTS: The number of comprehensive and basic EmOC facilities did not change over the 3-year period (p for trend=1.000). Although institutional delivery rate decreased in 2006, overall it increased over 3 years (p for trend<0.001) - 31.8% (2005), 31.1% (2006) and 34.7% (2007), and Caesarean section rate was low and did not change (p for trend=0.257) - 1.7% (2005), 1.6% (2006) and 1.5% (2007). There was a significant increase in the met need for EmOC (p for trend<0.001) - 15.2% for 2005, 17.0% for 2006 and 18.8% for 2007. Maternal mortality decreased significantly from 250 per 100,000 women in 2005 to 222 in 2006 and 182 in 2007 (p for trend<0.001). Similarly, the case fatality rate decreased monotonically (p for trend<0.001) - 3.7% (2005), 3.0% (2006) and 1.5% (2007). DISCUSSION: Audit and feedback can improve availability, utilisation and quality of emergency obstetric care in countries with limited resources. CONCLUSION: There is need to increase availability of emergency obstetric care by upgrading some health centres to EmOC level through training of staff and provision of equipment and supplies.     

公司治理强度、审计力度与审计质量

自安然事件以来,公司治理和外部审计的重要性得到了前所未有的重视.本文构建了一个公司所有者与外部审计师之间的博弈理论模型,以分析均衡状态下公司治理强度、审计力度与审计质量之间的关系,并讨论所有者和审计师赔偿责任对博弈均衡的影响.我们特别引入了公司治理成本函数和审计成本函数,并同时考虑了公司所有者和审计师的赔偿责任.在本模型中,公司所有者对公司治理强度的决策和外部审计师对审计力度的决策共同影响审计报告对外部投资者的信息有用性(即审计质量),并最终影响了公司的成交价格.研究得到的主要结论是:(1)均衡状态下公司治理强度的增加有助于提升审计力度和审计质量;(2)所有者赔偿责任的增加只会提高公司成交价格,但不会影响博弈均衡和均衡状态下的审计质量;(3)审计师赔偿责任的增加并不一定导致所有者降低公司治理强度,且只有在特定情况下才能提升审计力度和审计质量.     

审计失败原因分析及对策研究

我国注册会计师行业近几年来诉讼案例频繁发生 ,社会各界反映强烈。为此 ,本文试从注册会计师审计失败的成因、审计失败的形式及对策研究等方面做出剖析 ,以提供有效的解决思路。     

浅议高校内部财务控制与审计

随着我国财经法律法规的不断健全、高等教育体制的不断改革,高校内部财务控制有了自己的特点。高校内部财务控制包括资产的内部控制、负债的内部控制、收入与支出的内部控制等内容。高校应重视对内部财务控制的审计,充分利用内部审计和外部审计,不断完善高校内部财务控制,保证高校经济活动的正常进行。     

The Impact of Using Personal Learning Audits as a Means of Preparing Students for Practice: A Small‐Scale Evaluation

This paper examines the ‘effectiveness’ of a tool used by students to enable them to reflect upon their skill, knowledge and abilities in order that they can prepare for direct practice. The evaluation of the Personal Learning Audit (PLA) was carried out with a cohort of students on the part‐time BA/DipSW programme at Glasgow Caledonian University and was based on a direct practice placement undertaken between April and August 2005. The research was based on a range of methods that considered both the participants' perception of the PLA and its impact on their written work on placement. The intention of this mixed method approach was to obtain outcomes at a number of levels in relation to the efficacy of the tool. While the findings have to be considered in the context of the small‐scale nature of the research, the evidence of this study suggests that the PLA process is at its most effective when fully integrated into the students' learning structures both within the placement and the university setting.     

Causes,effects and mitigation of unreliable healthcare supplies

This study investigates the means by which hospitals can improve the reliability of their medical supply value streams. Field research involving pharmacy supplies in eight Australasian public sector hospitals utilised a rigorous, multi-method data collection procedure based around the uncertainty circle model. Value stream maturity, performance inhibitors and pathways to effective improvement are explored. The high levels of value stream uncertainty detected are commonly the result of process immaturity and poor inter-functional integration. Chief among the common root causes is failure by the executive to acknowledge the strategic value of medical supplies management, which ultimately leads to higher materials cost and increased risk of a medical mishap. The study demonstrates how managers can use systems thinking and a context-free performance benchmark to identify effective interventions and potentially transferable best practices.     

The role of the audit committee in Thailand: a mature monitoring mechanism or an evolving process?

Following the East Asia financial crisis of 1997 in common with other countries, Thailand mimicked a series of governance measures, including the mandatory formation of audit committees (AC), that were designed in western developed nations with diffuse share ownership, although evidence about the success of these measures in developed nations is mixed. This research contributes to understanding of the role of ACs in a non-English speaking developing country, where share ownership is concentrated, rather than diffuse. It examines the perceptions of audit committee members, investors and analysts about the roles ACs perform and the importance of these roles. To obtain a large number of responses we have used a questionnaire survey method. We adopt Spira’s (Corporate Governance: an International Review 6(1):29–38, 1998) model of evolutionary development of ACs in which they are characterised as developing along a continuum from an ‘infant’ to a ‘mature’ stage of development, although such development need not be linear. The majority of our participants report that ACs perform roles that are in line with international guidelines, but this appears to reflect a passive role in terms of complying with, rather than developing guidance and regulation. Our evidence reveals that the ACs placed greater emphasis on internal control systems, including internal audit and review of audit fees, than on roles associated with external audit and financial statements, indicative of an early stage in the process of evolutionary development.

A Mixed Model for Double Checking Fallible Auditors

This article discusses the problem of a fallible auditor who assesses the values of sampled records, but may make mistakes. To detect these mistakes, a subsample of the checked elements is checked again, now by an infallible expert.

We propose a model for this kind of double check, which takes into account that records are often correct; however, if they are incorrect, the errors can take on many different values—as is often the case in audit practice. The model therefore involves error probabilities as well as distributional parameters for error sizes.

We derive maximum likelihood estimators for these model parameters and derive from them an estimator for the mean size of the errors in the population. A simulation study shows that the latter outperforms some other—previously introduced—estimators.     

哈佛服务利润链理论及其隐义引申

《哈佛商业评论》1994年首次发表、2008年原文重刊的"让服务利润链有效作用"一文,"展示了一个简洁而无比明了的增加服务企业利润的方法"。要使服务利润链"链条"能够正相关联动起来,不仅外部服务要为顾客创造出高的顾客让渡价值,更重要的是通过高质量的内部服务为一线员工创造高的"内部顾客让渡价值"。在介绍服务利润链(SPC)理论形成溯源、走向成熟及其理论精髓的基础上,笔者引申了SPC隐义,认为:SPC强调成本收益的比较,每个链环都有产生"利润"的使命;SPC存在关键链环,不同业态特征关键链环不尽相同,不同发展时期关键链环会有所转化;SPC要求建立内部服务"质量拳"概念,从五个方面构筑优质内部服务质量;SPC关注许多难以计量却又对服务业赢利至关重要的指标参数,服务利润链审计可以借鉴平衡计分卡(BSC)方法发展切合自身特点的SPCA工具。