Anatomy of an instrument tray from central sterile supply to the operating room

One can understand the importance of quality control measures to ensure that instrument trays meet specific standards on a consistent basis. The essence of the role of the quality control supervisor of CSS is to support the surgical services provided in the OR. Since technology is constantly changing, it is paramount that the quality control supervisor keep abreast of new knowledge and improve services to meet the needs of the OR.     

Materiel management in the operating room: a case study

The hospital continues to be pleased with the progress of our material services program in all areas, but especially surgery. It took a few simple, basic methods, such as exchange carts and inventory control, mixed them with people who actually care about doing a good job, and the whole program moved forward dramatically. People, both in materiel services and surgery, have accomplished a tremendous amount in the past two years. They have made, and will continue to improve, an already excellent program.     

In search of a big enough stick to tame the wild operating room inventory beast

This article discusses the many aspects of a prime vendor relationship with a medical-surgical distributor. It outlines features or value-added services that should be included when a hospital embarks on a new prime vendor relationship or tries to improve an existing one.     

Measuring cost savings in the operating room: a matter of FOCUS (follow-through, obsolescence, control, utilization, standardization)

In summary, changes came slowly at first in the OR. The biggest inventory reduction came about a year after the effort had begun. It would seem that tackling obsolescence, standardizing products, etc. would give an initial "big chunk" savings, with small amounts coming later as inventories are lowered. What we expected did not occur, due to the inherent nature of practices and what was customarily being used. For example, previously, some equipment purchases were paid for by purchasing product, which resulted in long-term commitments and high supply costs. The OR at times seemed more like a process of managing change, not just supplies. FOCUS is a daily process. How many times can you afford to overlook this process? How often are the mistakes of the past repeated? In review, we suggest this simple outline: Follow-through (review each case from start to finish), Obsolescence (schedule inventories every six months), Control (achieve inventory management by adjusting PAR levels to needs), Utilization (utilize product/equipment with your control), and Standardization (standardize products and measure results).     

铁路室内外轨道电路问题处理技术探析

文章针对轨道电路的常见故障进行了深入分析,总结了轨道电路在发生各种故障时的不同处理技术与方法,探讨了提高故障处理效率的技巧,从而压缩故障造成的生产延时,努力提高机车的运输效益。     

Alternate manpower forecasts for the coming decade: Second guessing the U.S. department of labor

This paper presents alternate detailed forecasts of U.S. occupational requirements in the coming decade obtained from simulations conducted with the Center for Advanced Computation manpower forecasting model. These alternate manpower forecasts, developed on the basis of different mixes of federal social programs and budget priorities, are compared with the long-range employment projections developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, and the differences in methodology are analyzed. The sources of potential error in the Labor Department forecasts are identified, and a potentially more accurate picture of the shape of U.S. manpower requirements in the coming decade is presented.