Abstract Banks and banking business are exposed to the influence of numerous risks, of which the importance of credit risk management stands out, because credit risk is the only risk that banks are obliged to measure, record in accounting and report. Banks monitor credit risk through the segmentation of the credit portfolio according to the level of risk. This paper is focused on research related to the management of the riskiest category of the credit portfolio, for which we will use the term special credit risk (SCR) in this paper.

Background: The book “An Impossible Decision - the Life Interrupted by Uncertainty”has been published by Avicena Publisher in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2023 - ISBN: 978-9958-720-76-5. Objective: The aim of this article is to analize what is the most rational and ethical way to treat people facing life-and-death decisions and how do we exactly communicate these inevitable uncertainties that all of us will sooner or later face? Methods: Author of the book shows real-life relevance to patients often left alone to make these difficult decisions. Using the techniques of medical dramaturgy, this text brilliantly bridges science. Results and Discussion: The author of the book explained and proposed how to educate the public on how medical advances are made and how inferences and evidence are generated and appraised - in the best tradition of evidence-based medicine while highlighting uncertainties and inevitable trade-offs that accompany science, policies, and personal choices in the attempt to arrive at most satisfactory decisions. In addition to the general public, this play’s important audiences are students and faculty in humanities disciplines and medical schools. These students are required to read many dense scientific, philosophical, and technical writings (many of which are referenced/annotated in the footnotes in the play). The play provides an exceptional teaching tool, which includes over 35 theoretical concepts to show how they can be applied to decisions relevant to all of us and what shared decision- making entails. Conclusion: Author’s answer on the question “How to make the life and death medical decisions?” coul’d and shoul’d be: The method of using a playwright and Socrates dialogue format to connect the science of uncertainty with personal humanity decision will be appropriate. It will be important and quiet usefull for phisicians and, also, patients in healthcare practice, as joined decision makers.

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Abstract This study classifies local self-government units (local communities) in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBIH) according to socio-economic characteristics by applying the following multivariate methods: principal component analysis (PCA), regression and cluster analysis. The selection of variables was based on literature and adjusted by FBIH specifics, covering the four hypothetical dimensions of regional differentiation: macroeconomic, demographic, infrastructural and socio-cultural indicators. PCA has identified five components: the productivity component, demographic component, component of economic activity potential, spatial component and employment component. Further analysis showed that all identified factors are significant predictors of local communities’ development, measured by the development index. The cluster analysis resulted with four clusters in the FBIH with significant differences in development level. Considering that FBIH municipalities are administrative units of local government and that the classification is based on socio-economic dimensions, identified clusters correspond to the NUTS principles.

Abstract The main aim of this study is to explore the mediating effect of innovation in the relationship between human resource management (HRM) practices and organizational performance. HRM practices are observed through selective hiring, training, participative decision-making, and rewarding. Innovation is conceptualized over behavioral, product, process, and market innovation. The study relies upon the principles of social exchange theory and resource-based theory. Data were collected from 408 managers in an emerging economy context. The proposed conceptual model is evaluated with structural equation modeling using Lisrel 8.8 and SPSS 22. Study findings suggest that innovation influences the relationship between selective hiring, training, and participative decision-making and organizational performance. However, no mediating effect of innovation was found in a relationship between rewarding and organizational business performances. Since human resources and innovation are among the leading sources for building competitive advantage for companies, the study findings contribute to HRM and innovation.

Abstract Introduction. COVID-19 pandemic increased consumption of alcohol (including harmful drinking – HD), and decreased physical activity levels (PAL) globally, but there is an evident lack of studies examining the problem in the post-pandemic period. This study aimed to evaluate gender-specific associations between sport participation and PAL (independent variables), and HD (dependent variable) among college/university students during the first post-pandemic year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and Methods. The participants were college/university students, aged 18 to 21 years (n = 788; 409 females) from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. They were tested on socio-demographic factors, HD (using the AUDIT scale), sport participation and PAL (using the IPAQ questionnaire). Analysis of variance, Chi square test, and t-test for independent samples were used to evaluate differences, while logistic regression with dichotomized criterion (HD vs. non-harmful drinking – NHD) was calculated to establish associations between independent and dependent variables. Results. T-test indicated significant differences between HD and NHD in PAL (t-test = 2.16, p = 0.02), but only in males. Also, logistic regression indicated a significant correlation between PAL and HD in males (OR: 1.41, 95%CI: 1.11-1.76), while no association was evidenced: (i) between sport participation and HD (in both males and females), and (ii) between PAL and HD (in females). Conclusions. Results indicated that an overall increase in PAL could be helpful in decreasing HD among college/university students; however, to evaluate it more specifically, prospective analyses are needed.

Flexibility is an important determinant of dynamic balance, but studies rarely examined the chronic effects of flexibility training on changes in balance capacity. This study aimed to determine the influence of different forms of flexibility exercises on dynamic balance in female professional football players. Participants were 30 female professional football players (age =19.0±4.1 years), divided into three groups dynamic stretching group (DSG; N=10, age =18.9±3.3 years), static stretching group (SSG; N=10, age =19.5±4.3 years) and control group (N=10, age =18.5±3.3 years). All groups participated in equal football training, while DSG and SSG performed additional flexibility training 3-times a week (10-15 min of duration) throughout the study course (16 weeks). Dynamic balance was measured by the Y-balance test (YBT), and ANOVA for repeated measurement was applied to identify the effects. Results evidenced the significant influence of both flexibility programs on dynamic balance. Both DSG and SSG were equally effective in the first part of the study (until the 8th week), but between the 8th and 16th study week, only DSG improved their balance capacity significantly. Static stretching should be applied in the first phases of flexibility training aiming at the improvement of dynamic balance, but in later phases, usage of dynamic stretching is suggested.

Alcohol drinking is an important health-related problem and one of the major risk factors for a wide array of non-communicable diseases, while there is a lack of studies investigating environment-specific associations between sports participation and alcohol drinking in adolescence. This study prospectively investigated the relationship between sports factors (i.e., participation in sports and competitive achievement), with the prevalence of harmful alcohol drinking (HD), and HD initiation in 14-to-16 years old adolescents from Bosnia and Herzegovina (n = 641, 337 females, 43% living in rural community). Participants were tested over 4-time points divided by approximately 6 months, from the beginning of high school to the end of the second grade. Variables included gender, factors related to sport participation, a community of residence (urban or rural), and outcome: alcohol consumption was assessed by the AUDIT questionnaire. Results evidenced that the prevalence of HD increased over the study period from 6 to 19%, with no significant differences between urban and rural youth. Logistic regression for HD as criterion evidenced adolescents who participated in sports and then quit as being at particular risk for drinking alcohol at the study baseline. Sports factors were not correlated with HD initiation in the period between 14 and 16 years of age. It seems that the problem of alcohol drinking should be preventively targeted in all youth, irrespective of living environment. Although sports participation was not evidenced as being a factor of influence on HD initiation, results highlight the necessity of developing targeted preventive campaigns against alcohol drinking for adolescents who quit sports.

Background and Objectives: We aimed to assess the effect of AST/ALT ratio on echocardiographic and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) parameters after COVID-19 patients recover. Materials and Methods: 87 patients with COVID-19 were included in the study. The patients were hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia, but the patients did not need intensive care unit follow-up or non-invasive mechanical ventilation support. After a discharge and two weeks following the positive swab test result, patients were considered eligible if they had any symptoms. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) was performed within 24 h prior to CMRI. The median value of AST/ALT ratio was found, and the study population was divided into two subgroups based on the median AST/ALT ratio value. The clinical features, blood test, TTE and CMRI results were compared between subgroups. Results: C-reactive protein, D-dimer and fibrinogen were found to be significantly higher in patients with high AST/ALT ratio. LVEF, TAPSE, S’, and FAC were significantly lower in patients with high AST/ALT ratio. LV-GLS were significantly lower in patients with high AST/ALT ratio. In CMRI, native T1 mapping signal, native T2 mapping signal and extracellular volume raised significantly in patients with high AST/ALT ratio. Right ventricle stroke volume and right ventricle ejection fraction were significantly lower in patients with high AST/ALT ratio, but right ventricle end systolic volume was significantly higher in patients with high AST/ALT ratio. Conclusion: High AST/ALT ratio is related to impaired right ventricular function parameters with CMRI and echocardiography after recovery from acute COVID-19. Assessment of AST/ALT ratio at hospital admission may be used to assess the risk of cardiac involvement in COVID-19 disease, and these patients may require closer follow-up during and after the course of COVID-19.

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Abstract This paper studies the extent individuals are willing to undertake energy efficiency measures, with evidence coming from a developing country (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The goal of this paper is to analyze energy-savings behaviors, aiming to understand what is typically meant under the term energy efficiency, who is more likely to know the meaning, and the extent individuals are willing to undertake some energy efficiency measures. The sample size used in this paper is a random stratified sample of 1,415 individuals coming from various backgrounds. Our logistic regression models found no statistically significant predictor across all ten measures used in the study. However, past experience, age, and being married are relatively common across these ten energy-saving behaviors. These results might be beneficial in defining policies in order to promote energy-saving behaviors.