The cooperative banks' business model is unique in the financial market. It is featured by democratic foundations (one-head-one-vote principle), proximity to the members and the community they serve, limited profit-seeking nature, and prudent management. However, these principles are applied in a variety of organisational structures and economic and regulatory contexts, making cooperative banks significantly different from one country to another. This book expands existing knowledge on the European cooperative banking sector by analysing recent trends affecting cooperative banks. Namely, the book discusses the role of cooperative banks in the policy and societal movement towards sustainability, including in adopting sustainable finance practices. It explores the digital transformation journey of cooperative banks and the impact of the consolidation of Fintech players in the financial services markets. It further showcases the need to evolve the cooperative banks' governance structures and processes in order to foster (and in some cases restore) democracy and transparency in the decision-making. Lastly, the book debates the specific role of cooperative banks in the economic crisis that has followed the unfolding of the Covid-19 pandemic vis-a-vis their members and the communities they serve. Of interest to scholars, professors, students, and practitioners of banking and finance, this book will build on the existing research and explore the latest trends in the space.

Transformational Collaborative Outcomes Management (TCOM) is a comprehensive, multi-level conceptual framework for system management and improvement. This book provides a comprehensive understanding of TCOM by using person-centered, collaborative processes for decision making. The issue with current human services systems is that there is a lack of access to care and that the system is focused on providing services as cheaply as possible. TCOM focuses on helping the greatest number of people while maximizing effectiveness. By fully understanding the nature of the business of helping, the author seeks to offer ways to create and sustain effective and positively evolving helping systems. He lays out a series of goal-directed social change processes which allow people at every level of a system to begin a shift towards transformational practice and the emergence of transformational systems. Building on three decades of work in a large community of scholars and practitioners, this book will represent the first full description of the conceptual framework and will appeal to an interdisciplinary group of scholars across nonprofit management, healthcare management, and social work.

This book provides a multidisciplinary analysis of the potential conflict between a government's duty to protect children and a parent(s)' right to raise children in a manner they see fit. Using philosophical, bioethical, and legal analysis, the author engages with key scholars in pediatric decision-making and individual and religious rights theory. Going beyond the parent-child dyad, the author is deeply concerned both with the inteests of the broader society and with the appropriate limits of government interference in the private sphere. The text offers a balance of individual and population interests, maximizing liberty but safeguarding against harm. Bioethics and law professors will therefore be able to use this text for both a foundational overview as well as specific, subject-level analysis. Clinicians such as pediatricians and gynecologists, as well as policy-makers can use this text to achieve balance between these often competing claims. The book is written by a physician with practical and theoretical knowledge of the subject, and deep sympathy for the parental and family perspectives. As such, the book proposes a new way of evaluating parental and state interventions in children's' healthcare: a refreshing approach and a useful addition to the literature.

This volume analyses the very first community-based enterprise active in the herbal sector in India, the Gram Mooligai Company Limited (GMCL). The analysis presented in this volume demonstrates that the GMCL example provides a unique model of how a community-based enterprise could represent an alternative and promising model for development of local communities. It is an unconventional form of entrepreneurship, in that it is based on regarding collective and individual interests as fundamentally complementary, and viewing communal values and the notion of the common good as essential elements in venture creation.

Here is the first detailed study of the economic, social, and administrative implications for the establishment of continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs). Leaders in the field of optional living arrangements for the elderly examine models of continuing care retirement communities throughout the United States. A wide range of sometimes conflicting views are vigorously discussed--by proponents of continuing care communities as well as by representatives from states that do not allow the existence of such institutions. Other intensely debated topics include existing and recommended financial and legal regulations of the industry; legal, financial, and ethical implications of continuing care communities; and a sociohistorical overview of the concept of continuing care.

This informative volume introduces the most current standards for practicality and professionalism in health care marketing. Major health marketers reveal state-of-the-art applications and activities that will keep you on the cutting edge of this growing specialty.

Questions concerning the notion of quality of life, its definition, and its ap plications for purposes of assessment and measurement in social and medical contexts, have been widely discussed in Scandinavia during the last ten years. To a great extent this discussion mirrors the international develop ment in the area. Several methods for the assessment and measurement of quality of life have been borrowed from the UK and the US and then further developed in northern Europe. But there has also been an internal develop ment. This holds in particular for the social arena, where Scandinavia has had a special tradition both in theory and practice. In this volume an attempt is made to illustrate some aspects of the philo sophical, and in general theoretical, discussion concerning quality of life in Scandinavia. In addition, some prominent scholars from other parts of Europe, i. e., France, the Netherlands, the UK and Italy, have been invited to contribute. The volume is divided into three sections. The first contains philosophical analyses of the general notion of quality of life and proposes a number of different explications. The second section considers various ap plications of the notion of quality of life in health care. The papers serve to disentangle some intellectual and ethical problems that stem from these ap plications. The third section is more practical and focuses on methods of measuring quality of life in medicine and health care."

This open access book is the first monograph to systematically apply the Programmatic Action Framework (PAF) in a comparative analysis of public policy in two institutionally different countries. The PAF seeks to explain long-term policy change by examining the shared biographies of policy actors who, to foster their careers, coalesce around policy programs which they promote throughout the policy process. Comparing health policy-making in France and Germany between 1990 and 2020, the book sheds light on the institutional settings that are necessary for programmatic action to occur. It will appeal to scholars and students of public policy, public administration, and health policy.

This book focuses on how a distinctly American product-managed care-got its start, how it works, and what needs to be adjusted in the future. As Birenbaum makes clear, this book is about social change. It is about doctors contracting with health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and being subject to their rules; about the limited access to specialty care; and about the frugal use of hospital admissions and stays. Consumers and providers have had mixed experiences in these health-delivery systems. Birenbaum, a health-policy analyst, has created a synthesis of research studies and analyses of trends to chronicle these developments and to suggest remedies to correct the most unjust aspects of managed care.

This book is about social change. It is about doctors contracting with HMOs and being subject to their rules; about the limited access to specialty care; and about the frugal use of hospital admissions and stays. Consumers and providers have had mixed experiences with HMOs. Birenbaum, a health-policy analyst, has created a synthesis of research studies and analyses of trends to chronicle these developments and to suggest remedies to correct the most unjust aspects of managed care. This is important reading for anyone concerned with contemporary health care in America.

Aspects of cancer and cancer therapies; long-term adjustments of renal donors and recipients; community life (including support facilities and home dialysis); medical aspects of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD); psychiatric disturbances; public policy issues; the role of the doctor, staff, and society, sexuality and loss of sexual function, surgical aspects; and anticipatory grief, acute grief, and bereavement are all discussed in this book for caregivers working with ESRD patients.

A practical guide for developing and writing a strategic marketing plan for health and human service organizations, this comprehensive volume takes professionals through the major steps of the marketing planning process. In addition to a useful overview of the basic marketing components, detailed descriptions of the application of market planning principles to health care organizations are consistently emphasized.

Drawing on theory and empirical research, this book provides an analysis of the intersections between LGBTQ+ identification and chronic illness. Chapters focus on the theoretical meaning of chronic illness as a queer notion, as well as the lived experiences of chronically ill LGBTQ+ people. The author analyzes chronic illness as an experience that interrogates the normative notions of time, (in)visibility, and disability. Interweaving notions of heteronormativity and able-bodiedness as interwoven and mutually dependent, this book argues that the experience of chronic illness through the LGBTQ+ embodiment presents the potential to imagine bodies differently.This book will be useful for scholars and students in Disability Studies, Queer Studies, and Gender Studies.

The book presents the state of the art of the Internet of Things (IoT), applied to Human-Centered Design (HCD) projects addressed to ageing users, from the perspective of health, care and well-being. The current focus on the ageing population is opening up new opportunities for the development of niche solutions aimed at the niche category of older users who are beginning to experience physical and cognitive decline but are still independent and need to maintain their autonomy for as long as possible. The combination between the needs expressed by older users and the opportunities offered by the recent innovative technologies related to the Internet of Things allows research institutions, stakeholders, and academia to target and design new solutions for older users, safeguarding their well-being, health, and care, improving their quality of life. This book discusses and analyses the most recent services, products, systems and environments specifically conceived for older users, in order to enhance health, care, well-being and improve their quality of life. This approach is coherent with the percept of AAL or enhanced living environment, looking to the users' comfort, autonomy, engagement and healthcare. The book describes and analyses aspects of HCD with older users looking to the emerging technologies, products, services, and environments analysed in their actual application in different areas, always concerning the design for the elderly related to the IoT, just as the development of biomonitoring devices, tools for activity recognition and simulation, creation of smart living environments, solutions for their autonomy, assistance and engagement enhancing health, care and wellbeing. The book is intended for researchers, designers, engineers, and practitioners in healthcare to connect academia, stakeholders, and research institutions to foster education, research and innovation.

The pandemic that struck in late 2019 - the coronavirus, commonly referred to as COVID-19 - affected every country in the world. This book examines how the pandemic has impacted healthcare institutions worldwide, and focuses on the international experience of COVID-19 in terms of healthcare delivery since 2019 and today. It highlights how healthcare facilities around the world have managed and continue to manage their obligations to their citizens. The book's goal is to improve our understanding of the many negative and positive impacts of the pandemic on various aspects of our lives, including the health aspect, and how healthcare institutions could expand their ability to manage similar pandemics in the future without seriously compromising their ability to address other, regular health issues. At the same time, it takes a closer look at CSR, sustainability, ethics, and governance issues related to the pandemic, as well as current CSR practices in each of the countries reviewed. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to a broad readership including researchers, practitioners, and students concerned with the pandemic's societal and public health implications.

In this book, the history of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform is told by one of its main protagonists. In the early 1980s, there were about 80 thousand people admitted to psychiatric hospitals in Brazil, with average lengths of hospital stay of approximately 25 years. The psychiatric reform process that took place in the country was responsible for closing more than 60 thousand beds in mental asylums, most of them characterized by conditions of violence and abandonment.The Brazilian Psychiatric Reform was inspired by the psychosocial care model introduced by psychiatrist Franco Basaglia in Italy and was marked by the broad participation of social movements, such as the anti-asylum movement and other human rights movements. This process gave rise to a model of mental health care based on open-door territorial mental health services, guided by the principle of treatment in liberty, in addition to other strategies of deinstitutionalization. More than a proposal to restructure or modernize the mental health care model, the objective of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform was the construction of a new social place for the diverse and singular subjective experience of madness. By intending to produce new imaginaries, new social representations and new meanings for these experiences, the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform led to one of the larger experiences of deinstitutionalization in the world and to the large scale implementation of a new model of mental health care in which the old asylum-centric paradigm was replaced by a new democratic psychosocial care model.

Starting with a working definition, this comprehensive work defines the attributes of the population health model. It clarifies what population health is and is not. It discusses health disparities and the social determinants of health and illness and provides new ways of moving forward towards a more sustainable healthcare model in a changing society, thereby pointing out the importance of multi-sector collaboration for collective impact for community health improvement. The book takes this further by providing sources of data to support the population health model. As such, this book provides a must-read for students and anyone working, teaching or consulting in population healthcare.

Approximately fifty million people in the United States have no health insurance. Dr. Charles Chen, an obstetrician and gynecologist for almost thirty years, agrees with many people in this country that health insurance should cover every citizen, not just those who can afford to pay the rates.

"A Plan for a Single Payer Health Care System" takes an in-depth look at every aspect of our current health care system and provides a strategic plan, along with innovative solutions for reforming the system.

In an easy-to-understand format, Dr. Chen provides clear definitions and the pros and cons of utilizing three potential health care systems. Dr. Chen presents the results from his research on several international health care systems and then proposes the best solution for America. He recommends several concrete ideas, including establishing a Department of the National Health Care System, requesting the support of large corporations who pay high medical premiums for employees, and allowing uninsured citizens to purchase a low-cost health plan from the government.

The ability to receive medical treatment should be a basic human right. Dr. Chen's plan for improvement helps shine a bright light on a situation that has quickly become critical for this country. His plan will ultimately help ensure that all citizens have access to health insurance.

"A Plan for a Single-Payer Health Care System" takes an in-depth look at every aspect of our current health care system and provides a strategic plan, along with innovative solutions for reforming the system.

In an easy-to-understand format, Dr. Chen provides clear definitions and the pros and cons of utilizing three potential health care systems. Dr. Chen presents the results from his research on several international health care systems and then proposes the best solution for America. He recommends several concrete ideas, including establishing a Department of the National Health Care System, requesting the support of large corporations who pay high medical premiums for employees, and allowing uninsured citizens to purchase a low-cost health plan from the government.

The ability to receive medical treatment should be a basic human right. Dr. Chen's plan for improvement helps shine a bright light on a situation that has quickly become critical for this country. His plan will ultimately help ensure that all citizens have access to health insurance.

Once regarded as taboo, it is now claimed that we are a death-obsessed society. The face of death in the 21st century, brought about by cultural and demographic change and advances in medical technology, presents health and social care practitioners with new challenges and dilemmas. By focusing on predominant patterns of dying; global images of death; shifting boundaries between the public and the private; and cultural pluralism, the author looks at the way death is handled in contemporary society and the sensitive ethical and practical dilemmas facing nurses, social workers, doctors and chaplains. This book brings together perspectives from social science, health-care and pastoral theology to assist the reader in understanding and negotiating this 'new death'. End-of-life care and old age, changing funeral and burial practices, new stigmas such as drug-related bereavements, are highlighted, and theories of dying and bereavement re-examined in their context. The concluding chapters incorporate recent case studies into an exploration of the meanings and shape of holistic and integrated care. Students interested in death studies from a sociological and cultural viewpoint as well as health and social care practitioners, will benefit from its critical appraisal and application of the established knowledge base to contemporary practices and ethical debates.

Healthcare managers, professionals and service users operate in an increasingly complex environment in terms of policy, regulation and governance arrangements. The policy process is becoming pluralised as competing narratives are drawn upon to influence practice. A wide range of contradictory and inconsistent policies are on offer to healthcare stakeholders, which ultimately results in a broad spectrum of responses, adaptations and improvisations throughout the process of policy implementation. The impact on managerial and professional practice is significant: Whilst some voices are suppressed or ignored, the complex nature of contemporary policy contexts can also help local actors exercise their agency and advance their agenda. This edited volume investigates how contemporary policy trends are influencing healthcare systems, organisations and professions and explores the various ways in which policy implementation could be enacted, resisted and reinvented by healthcare managers and professionals on the ground. It sheds light on the complex web of connections that exist between policy development (Part I), its translation into practice (Part II), and the activities of organisational leaders who are trying their best to make sense of - and succeed in - challenging policy contexts (Part III).

This timely monograph focuses on India and Brazil's use of compulsory licensing, one of the most significant and controversial TRIPS flexibilities. This is a topical work at this critical time when the COVID-19 has stirred up the debate about compulsory licensing and access to medicines. A closer look into the historical use of compulsory licences in certain countries can offer some takeaways for the current situation. The author studies historical developments and political conditions of the patent system and compulsory licensing from the earliest stage to the modern arena, with a great emphasis on TRIPS. After conducting a cross-national study of India and Brazil, the book moves on to evaluate the different philosophies on compulsory licensing of multilateral organizations such as the EU, the WIPO, the WTO, and NGOs. This important book will strongly appeal to intellectual property students, academics, policymakers, and lawyers practicing in the area. It will also be of interest to academics working in the areas of international law, development, and public health as well as state actors and others with relevant concerns working in multilateral organizations.