Business Commons^™

Ransomware In Healthcare Facilities: The Future Is Now, Nikki Spence, David P. Paul Iii, Alberto Coustasse

Alberto Coustasse, DrPH, MD, MBA, MPH

Cybercriminals have begun to target the healthcare industry with a type of malware called ransomware, malware that encrypts an infected device and any attached devices or network drives. After encryption, cybercriminals demand a sum of money, also known as a “ransom,” to release the devices from encryption. Without adequate disaster recovery and backup plans, many businesses are forced to pay the ransom. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of recent ransomware infections in healthcare settings, the risk liabilities and cost associated with such infections, and to determine possible risk mitigation tactics. Financial costs associated with business …

The Evolution Of Financial Instruments And The Legal Protection Against Counterfeiting: A Look At Coin, Paper, And Virtual Currencies, Ralph E. Mckinney, Lawrence P. Shao, Dale H. Shao, Duane C. Rosenblieb Jr.

Dale H Shao

This essay discusses the requirements for the long-term acceptance of virtual currency as a financial medium of exchange by examination of fundamental criteria associated with the historical development of common tender and selected virtual currencies. The relatively recent appearance of Internet-based transactions have necessitated developing virtual forms of payment such as virtual currencies. According to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) of the United States Treasury,5 virtual currencies are subject to regulation if that virtual currency has a substitutive purpose for facilitating the exchange of goods and services. Although governments can place stipulations on currencies, users of common tender, including …

Forensic Disciplines For Objective Global Strategic Analysis, Dale H. Shao, Lawrence P. Shao, Ralph E. Mckinney Jr.

Dale H Shao

The global nature of investing requires a thorough analysis of the firm to determine the strategic viability of the firm for investment purposes. In addition, businesses are being held more accountable for the statements they make and the actions they take concerning their business. Several forensic disciplines have recently emerged that may supply subjective and objective data that can assist investors in making their final investment decisions and determining if ongoing businesses are truly doing what is in the best interest of their shareholders. Another factor influencing the increase forensic analyses of national and multinational corporations is the increase in …

An Examination Of A Theory Of Embodied Social Presence In Virtual Worlds, Brian E. Mennecke, Janea L. Triplett, Lesya M. Hassall, Zayira Jordán Conde, Rex Heer

Lesya Hassall

In this article, we discuss and empirically examine the importance of embodiment, context, and spatial proximity as they pertain to collaborative interaction and task completion in virtual environments. Specifically, we introduce the embodied social presence (ESP) theory as a framework to account for a higher level of perceptual engagement that users experience as they engage in activity-based social interaction in virtual environments. The ESP theory builds on the analysis of reflection data from Second Life users to explain the process by which perceptions of ESP are realized. We proceed to describe implications of ESP for collaboration and other organizational functions.

When Size Does Matter: Identifying Multilevel Factors Contributing To It Major Choice, Andy Luse, Julie Rursch, Doug Jacobson

Julie Rursch

The current enrollment crisis in information technology (IT) has left employers scrambling to find qualified individuals to fill positions in IT within the corporation. One issue facilitating this dearth of workers is the lack of individuals pursuing IT-related majors. This research uses high school students to investigate the reasons behind individual choice to major in IT. Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used as a theoretical framework for better understanding these decisions and group-level contextual supports/barriers are investigated in a multilevel context. Findings show strong support for school size as a significant school-level predictor of intention to major in IT …

A Design Methodology And Implementation For Corporate Network Security Visualization: A Modular-Based Approach, Andy Luse, Brian E. Mennecke, Janea L. Triplett, Nate Karstens, Doug Jacobson

Douglas Jacobson

Research surrounding visualization for computer and network security has produced differing accepted methods for adequately developing security visualization products. The current work proposes a design methodology that melds the research of the three competing frameworks for security visualization development. In addition, a product that incorporates the proposed design methodology is developed, used, and evaluated. Findings show that users of the system believe the system has increased their effectiveness at performing network security tasks and are likely to use such a system in the future.

Provider Reimbursement Following The Affordable Care Act, Brandon Bowling, David Newman, Craig White, Ashley Wood, Alberto Coustasse Dr. Ph, Md, Mba

Alberto Coustasse, DrPH, MD, MBA, MPH

Decreasing healthcare expenditure has been one of the main objectives of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). To achieve this goal, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has been tasked with experimenting with provider reimbursement methods in an attempt to increase quality, while decreasing costs. The purpose of this research was to study the effects of the ACA on physician reimbursement rates from CMS to determine the most cost effective method of delivering healthcare services. CMS has experimented with payment methods in an attempt to increase cost effectiveness. Medicare has offered shared cost savings incentives to reward quality care …

The Trends In Dtca And Effects Of Dtca By Pharmaceutical Firms In The United States, Sathorn Preechavuthinant, William K. Willis Drph, Alberto Coustasse Drph, Md, Mba

Alberto Coustasse, DrPH, MD, MBA, MPH

The Direct-to-Consumer Advertising (DTCA) of pharmaceutical firms has been defined as an attempt of pharmaceutical companies to advertise products directly to patients (comsumers). Pharmaceutical DTCA has been criticized due to its inappropriateness and some urged the need to strengthen regulations. The DTCA has an impact on the public from both a benefit and harm concern. The purpose of this study is to investigate the current trend of pharmaceutical DTCA in the US and its effect on patients, physicians, and drug utilization. The methodology used in the research is literature review and semi-structured interview. The pharmaceutical DTCA showed reduction in total …

Data Analytics As A Conduit For Progressing Information Systems Research In Nonprofit Organizations, Karthikeyan Umapathy, Amy J. Connolly

Amy J Connolly

Data Analytics As A Conduit For Progressing Information Systems Research In Nonprofit Organizations, Karthikeyan Umapathy, Amy J. Connolly

Amy J Connolly

Data Analytics As A Conduit For Progressing Information Systems Research In Nonprofit Organizations, Karthikeyan Umapathy, Amy J. Connolly

Karthikeyan Umapathy

Assessing Differences Between Physician's Realized And Anticipated Gains From Electronic Health Record Adoption, Lori T. Peterson, Eric W. Ford, John Eberhardt, T. R. Huerta

Lori Peterson

Return on investment (ROI) concerns related to Electronic Health Records (EHRs) are a major barrier to the technology’s adoption. Physicians generally rely upon early adopters to vet new technologies prior to putting them into widespread use. Therefore, early adopters’ experiences with EHRs play a major role in determining future adoption patterns. The paper’s purposes are: (1) to map the EHR value streams that define the ROI calculation; and (2) to compare Current Users’ and Intended Adopters’ perceived value streams to identify similarities, differences and governing constructs. Primary data was collected by the Texas Medical Association, which surveyed 1,772 physicians on …

Order Acceptance Using Genetic Algorithms, Walter O. Rom, Susan A. Slotnick

Walter Rom

This paper uses a genetic algorithm to solve the order-acceptance problem with tardiness penalties. We compare the performance of a myopic heuristic and a genetic algorithm, both of which do job acceptance and sequencing, using an upper bound based on an assignment relaxation. We conduct a pilot study, in which we determine the best settings for diversity operators (clone removal, mutation, immigration, population size) in connection with different types of local search. Using a probabilistic local search provides results that are almost as good as exhaustive local search, with much shorter processing times. Our main computational study shows that the …

From Enrollment To Employment: A Dacum Approach To Information Systems And Information Security And Assurance Curriculum Design, Leila Halawi, Wendi M. Kappers, Aaron Glassman

Wendi M. Kappers, PhD

Issues associated with information security are numerous and diverse. Since the majority of organizational actions rely greatly on information and communication technologies, Information Systems (IS) security is now a main concern for firms, governments, institutes, and society as a whole. As a result, a plethora of graduate programs have been created, covering nearly every aspect of IS security. The authors review the current state of the IS industry presented in the literature, and identify a panel of IS experts in which to explore current job skill needs using a “Developing a Curriculum,” DACUM, process to support curriculum design for two …

From Enrollment To Employment: A Dacum Approach To Information Systems And Information Security And Assurance Curriculum Design, Leila Halawi, Wendi M. Kappers, Aaron Glassman

Wendi M. Kappers, PhD

Issues associated with information security are numerous and diverse. Since the majority of organizational actions rely greatly on information and communication technologies, Information Systems (IS) security is now a main concern for firms, governments, institutes, and society as a whole. As a result, a plethora of graduate programs have been created, covering nearly every aspect of IS security. The authors review the current state of the IS industry presented in the literature, and identify a panel of IS experts in which to explore current job skill needs using a “Developing a Curriculum,” DACUM, process to support curriculum design for two …

The Sustainability Imperative In Information Systems Research, Stefan Siedel, Pratyush Bharati

Pratyush Bharati

Healthcare It: Current Research And Future Trends, Vishal Midha, Madison N. Ngafeeson, Kaushik Ghosh

Madison Ngafeeson

No abstract provided.