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* Developing leadership skills is important for everyone in a law firm, regardless of their role. * Law firm leaders need to continuously learn, innovate and adapt. * Effective future governance of a law firm will require new skills., Nov 01, 2024 It's hard to believe, but this issue marks the end of my two-year run as editor of Law Practice--in some ways, it feels like my term just [...]

Agricultural technology and management have been so successful for so long that inexpensive food and fabric are taken for granted in all but the poorest countries, and famine is virtually [...]

* The annual finance issue of Law Practice focuses on the importance of finance for law firms and lawyers. * Finance plays a crucial role in legal practice. * This issue marks a full year of the move to an all-digital format for the magazine, which was driven by financial considerations and has resulted in budgetary benefits., It's time for our annual finance issue! Finance is crucial to the success of a law firm or an individual lawyer. We have once again gathered a set of expert [...]

As fresh oversight and assurance demands have been piled upon boards, much of the new workload has ended up on the audit committee's agenda. How are committees handling new duties such as cybersecurity, risk, compliance, finance talent, and technology? How is audit evolving to adapt?, As the regulatory environment grows in complexity and companies address new and continuing challenges, new expectations are placed on audit committees. The scope of their responsibilities continues to expand beyond [...]

In today's technology-driven world, companies are inundated with software solutions designed to capture vast amounts of data. This data is often used to guide or justify actions and agendas. However, [...]

Some argue that the Northern Ireland (Nl) economy has strong potential given Its apparent unique trade position as a halfway house between Europe and Britain, combined with the Department for [...]

'The most effective way to cope with change is to help create it.' --Salada Tea Bag 'Before coming to Wesleyan I was in an undergraduate foreign service program at Georgetown [...]

Summary * Law firm management presents unique challenges, likened to 'herding cats' or 'teaching pigs to dance,' and is a key focus area of the ABA's Law Practice Division. * [...]

Summary * Lawyers can leverage various strengths for effective marketing, including technology proficiency, involvement in professional associations and individual networking. * Despite technological advancements, the core objectives of marketing in [...]

Objective: To conduct a quality improvement evaluation of the Empower Veterans Program (EVP), an interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation/functional restoration program option for functional restoration for high-impact chronic pain, offered in a large metro-area Veterans Health Administration (VHA) system. Data Sources: VHA Corporate Data Warehouse electronic medical record data for patients treated by EVP between 2015 and 2019. Evaluation Design: This retrospective design first compared EVP patients considered engaged or not engaged in completing treatment in terms of demographic characteristics and post-treatment changes in clinical measures related to opioid use and mental health. We then compared mortality risk between matched groups of treated and untreated patients with chronic pain and concurrent opioid prescriptions using propensity score matching and Cox proportional hazards methods. 'Treated' in the matched groups was defined as any level of EVP participation (i.e., both engaged and not engaged). Data Collection/Extraction Methods: We first identified 1053 EVP patients with 1 year of pre-and post-treatment follow-time and determined their engagement level. From those with chronic pain and prescription opioids, we matched 237 EVP patients to 375 untreated patients. Principal Findings: Engaged patients (57.4% of treated patients), were somewhat older than the non-engaged (mean age 57.1 vs. 53.7, Cohen's D = 0.30), and achieved lower mean PHQ9 depression scores in the post-treatment year (9.2 vs. 10.6, Cohen's D = 0.20). Participation in EVP was associated with a 65% lower mortality risk among Veterans with chronic pain and opioid use when compared to the untreated patients: (HR: 0.35, 95% CI: 0.17, 0.75). Conclusions: EVP was associated with a large reduction in mortality risk for Veterans with both chronic pain and opioid use. This result could inform the decision process in a VA station or region when considering providing or expanding access to an interdisciplinary rehabilitation/functional restoration program for chronic pain. KEYWORDS chronic pain, functional rehabilitation, functional restoration, opioid use disorder, pain management, 1 | INTRODUCTION Veterans are more likely to suffer from the related impacts of chronic pain, opioid overdose, and suicide when compared to the general population. Severe pain is reported [...]

Objective: To estimate the effects of changes in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) mental health services staffing levels on suicide-related events among a cohort of Veterans. Data Sources: Data were obtained from the VHA Corporate Data Warehouse, the Department of Defense and Veterans Administration Infrastructure for Clinical Intelligence, the VHA survey of enrollees, and customized VHA databases tracking suicide-related events. Geographic variables were obtained from the Area Health Resources Files and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Study Design: We used an instrumental variables (IV) design with a Heckman correction for non-random partial observability of the use of mental health services. The principal predictor was a measure of provider staffing per 10,000 enrollees. The outcome was the probability of a suicide-related event. Data Collection/Extraction Methods: Data were obtained for a cohort of Veterans who recently separated from active service. Principal Findings: From 2014 to 2018, the per-pay period probability of a suicide-related event among our cohort was 0.05%. We found that a 1% increase in mental health staffing led to a 1.6 percentage point reduction in suicide-related events. This was driven by the first fertile of staffing, suggesting diminishing returns to scale for mental health staffing. Conclusions: VHA facilities appear to be staffing-constrained when providing mental health care. Targeted increases in mental health staffing would be likely to reduce suicidality. KEYWORDS access to care, mental health services, resource allocation, suicide, Veterans, workforce, 1 | INTRODUCTION In 2018, suicide was the tenth leading cause of death in the US and the second leading cause of death for people between 10 and 34 years [...]

I had a very 'ordinary' early life growing up in Monaghan. I was of a generation where it wasn't so commonplace to go to college, but I was always reasonably [...]

Good communication is critical for any business or industry. This is especially true when developing natural resources in Alaska, where nothing is more indicative of a project's success or failure [...]

As receivers, we are seeing the number of appointments driven by economic and market turbulence rocket. Our instructions have increased threefold year on year, while in the wider market, Nara [...]

At dawn, I crept onto my balcony as the MSC Seascape approached Ocean Cay, MSC Cruises' private island and marine reserve in the Bahamas. It seemed impossible that the white-sand [...]

Located at the southern tip of Alaska's Inside Passage, the city of Ketchikan began life as a Tlingit fishing camp, later booming with the Gold Rush, timber and fishing industries. [...]

Summary * Law Practice Division authors preview some of what is to be learned at ABA TECHSHOW 2024. * Advances in AI technology have been prominent in the past year [...]

Purpose: In the study of expatriation, there has been less emphasis on the study of self-initiated expatriation as compared to organizational expatriation. Since people in the academia profession are amongst the most mobile and have greater opportunity to choose their employment destination, this paper explores the motivations and experiences of a group of British and American self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) that chose to work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Design/methodology/approach: Guided by a case study approach, purposive sampling was used to gather information from the participants through semi-structured, exploratory questions in order to understand SIEs decisions to expatriate to the Kingdom. Findings: Findings suggest that financial rewards and personal beliefs played significant roles in the participating SIEs decisions to expatriate to the Kingdom. Particularly, this location provides them with job opportunities that offer attractive monetary rewards which fulfills their financial needs, as well as avenues to enrich their personal needs. Research limitations/implications: This study focused on SIEs in a specific location, prior to the outbreak of the global pandemic. The appeal of self-initiated expatriation in the postpandemic era should be explored further. Practical implications: Data regarding the motivations and experiences of SIEs is beneficial for organizations' managing talent on an international scale because many organizations rely on SIEs as a source of labor. Understanding what motivates individuals to choose expatriation can assist organizations in formulating strategic human resource management decisions. Originality/value: This study focused on the driving factors of academic SIEs in choosing a specific location and found that their decision to expatriate to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was based on the distinctive value of the location itself. Keywords: Self-initiated expatriates; Expatriation; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; International human resource management, Introduction Advances in transportation and telecommunications technology over the years have created opportunities for people to look beyond their home countries for travel and career opportunities. Global mobility would mean, [...]

Summary * Everyone needs to have skills as a leader and a follower. * The best leaders are adept at service and remain calm under pressure. * This month's issue [...]

Objective: To examine the extent to which there was any therapeutic relationship between Veterans and their initial buprenorphine provider and whether the presence of this relationship influenced treatment retention. Data Sources: National, secondary administrative data used from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), 2008-2017. Study Design: Retrospective cohort study. The primary exposure was a therapeutic relationship between the Veteran and buprenorphine provider, defined as the presence of a previous visit or medication prescribed by the provider in the 2 years preceding buprenorphine treatment initiation. The primary outcome was treatment discontinuation, evaluated as 14 days of absence of medication from initiation through 1 year. Data Collection/Extraction Methods: Adult Veterans (age > 18 years) diagnosed with opioid use disorder and treated with buprenorphine or buprenorphine/naloxone within the VHA system were included in this study. We excluded those receiving buprenorphine patches, those with documentation of a metastatic tumor diagnosis within 2 years prior to buprenorphine initiation, and those without geographical information on rurality. Principal Findings: A total of 28,791 Veterans were included in the study. Within the overall study sample, 56.3% (n = 16,206) of Veterans previously had at least one outpatient encounter with their initial buprenorphine provider, and 24.9% (n = 7174) of Veterans previously had at least one prescription from that provider in the 2 years preceding buprenorphine initiation. There was no significant or clinically meaningful association between therapeutic relationship history and treatment retention when defined as visit history (aHR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.96, 1.02) or medication history (aHR: 1.03; 95% CI: 1.00,1.07). Conclusions: Veterans initiating buprenorphine frequently did not have a therapeutic history with their initial buprenorphine provider, but this relationship was not associated with treatment retention. Future work should investigate how the quality of Veteran-provider therapeutic relationships influences opioid use dependence management and whether eliminating training requirements for providers might affect access to buprenorphine, and subsequently, treatment initiation and retention. KEYWORDS access/demand/utilization of services, mental health, pharmaceuticals: prescribing/use/costs, rural health, substance abuse: alcohol, tobacco, chemical dependency, VA healthcare system, 1 | INTRODUCTION Over the last 20 years, nearly 450,000 individuals have died from an opioid overdose in the United States across three defined waves of increased opioid prescriptions, rising [...]

Most everywhere Alaskans live, at least one farm is nearby. No, not the approximately 762 farms that raise crops and livestock for sale (the smallest number in any state). Tank [...]

Though it has become shockingly routine for most schools in the U.S. to practice safety drills in case of a school shooting, the topic is rarely addressed in books for [...]

Bert Jacobs owes his success to the enduring power of optimism. As co-founder and CEO--chief executive optimist--of the apparel and accessories brand Life is Good, Jacobs has devoted his adult [...]

A middle-school English teacher for 15 years, Kate Messner burst onto the children's literature scene first with several middle-grade novels, then, in 2011, with her picture books Sea Monster's First [...]

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented need for hospitals and health systems to collaborate with physicians in redesigning healthcare with a greater focus on patients as consumers of healthcare. [...]

Low-dosage hydrate inhibitors are an alternative technology to thermodynamic inhibitors for preventing gas hydrates from restricting production from deepwater wells. Injecting the correct amount of a high-performance chemical has proven [...]

There is a new series of early chapter books featuring a Black boy in Meridian, Mississippi, that readers have eagerly embraced. In J. Dillard's J.D. and the Great Barber Battle, [...]

There are 146 credit unions (CUs) in Northern Ireland, with 592,171 adult member accounts and 104,906 juvenile deposit accounts, according to the Bank of England's Q2 2019 Credit Union Quarterly [...]

'Science is a verb; science is the doing of. Often, with nonfiction, we provide just the end result of our research, but the coolest part is the doing. Taking readers [...]

Linda Sue Park is a well-known and beloved author of many books for young readers. Among those favorite titles are A Single Shard (2001), winner of the 2002 Newbery Medal, [...]

Over the past six months, the world's corporate boards have gone from being dabblers in online governance to become hardened pros. What lessons have been learned in making virtual governance [...]

Graphic novels today are hotter than ever, offering immense possibilities for enriching classroom curriculum. However, there are still plenty of naysayers who fail to see their value. Two Louisiana librarians, [...]

All quality professionals, regardless of educational background and/or experience, will at times find a need to consult their network of resources to get answers to questions, determine how best to [...]

Increasing regulatory restrictions mean that there are limited preservation options currently available to the paint and coatings industry for both in-can and dry-film preservation. Experimental binders and thickeners that are [...]

The accounting profession comprises three pillars: research, policy, and practice. Rigorous research should inform policy, which leads to best practice. Accounting faculties in higher education institutions can foster links between [...]

Rail offers many significant advantages for freight shippers as compared with trucking. For many shippers, the benefits of switching from highway to rail are significant: * Safety: U.S. freight railroads [...]