Comparing the EMS adopter and EMS non-adopter organizations in achieving sustainable business goals.

The corporate sector has paid attention to the concept of sustainable development since the emergence of this concept in the late 1980s and the adoption of Environmental Management Systems (EMS) by many organizations is the initiative of these organizations' exact dimensions. The focus of this research is to compare the status of EMS adopter and EMS non-adopter organizations in terms of Environmental Performance, Occupational health and safety performance, Employee Satisfaction, Operational Improvement and competitive advantage. The overall environmental performance of EMS adopter companies was approximately two times higher than non-EMS adopter companies. EMS adopter organizations' performance was almost two times better than non-EMS adopter organizations regarding occupational health and safety. The overall Employee Satisfaction level at non-EMS adopter organizations was about three times better than at EMS adopter organizations. The EMS adopter organizations were found to have about three times performance regarding operational improvement. Regarding the competitive advantage gained by the EMS adopter companies compared to the non-EMS adopter organizations, no significant difference was observed between these two categories of organizations. However, The EMS adopter organizations seem to have a slight competitive advantage over non-adopter companies.

Higher odds and rising trends in arrhythmia among young cannabis users with comorbid depression.

BACKGROUND: Cannabis (marijuana) use and depression are known to be strongly interconnected. However, amid alarming rates of mental health problems in the United States young population, the risk of arrhythmia among young cannabis users with comorbid depression has never been studied. METHODS: In-hospital encounters of arrhythmia were identified among young cannabis users (18-39 years) with or without depression using the National Inpatient Sample (2007-2014) databases and apposite ICD-9 codes. Baseline characteristics and trends in prevalence of arrhythmia were evaluated among inpatient young cannabis users with or without depression. A multivariable regression was performed after adjusting for baseline demographics, comorbidities and parallel history of substance abuse. RESULTS: Of 2,011,598 young cannabis users (59.6% male) admitted from 2007-2014, 190,146 (9.5%) of patients had comorbid depression, of which 6.9% of patients experienced arrhythmias with atrial fibrillation being most common. Cannabis users with depression were more likely older, white, females and frequently hospitalized in Midwest and rural hospitals. We observed a steadily rising trend in prevalence of arrhythmia in both groups, but a more rapid rise in cannabis users with depression (4.9% in 2007 to 8.5% in 2014 vs. 3.7% in 2007 to 5.7% in 2014). Correspondingly, young depressed cannabis users had higher odds of arrhythmia compared to non-depressed even after controlling for demographics and comorbidities (OR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.38-1.44, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Rampant recreational use of marijuana may increase the risk of arrhythmia by 40% in young cannabis users with depression as compared to non-depressed.