This essay is a follow-up to the 2006 series expressing concern that there is a widespread gap between QC theory and QC practice. Now we are giving you, the reader, the opportunity to rate your own QC practice and to help prove or disprove that gap.  If the QC theories generally recommended by recognized QC experts ...

In most hospitals, the amount of nursing time spent on actual patient care is only 33 %, while problem solving consumes 40 % of their time. That’s the bad news. The good news is that inverting this ratio may be easier than you think.  According to Dr John Kenagy and David Sundahl of the US-based Kenagy & Associates,...

Technology is available worldwide to help us carry out diversified tasks and work in an easier, faster, and more efficient way.  Furthermore, technology can help us prevent analyzer downtime and failures that may have serious consequences for both business and patients. This article gives an overview of some of the...

Blood gas analysis is a complex field that has a direct impact on patient care in a critical care environment. Healthcare professionals consistently emphasize high-quality results in order to properly treat patients, and recognize the need and usefulness of quality standards.  Using a path-of-workflow analysis as part ...

Where do you go for help, when you are a parent of a child who stops breathing while it sleeps? If you live in the south of Sweden, you go to Halmstad County Hospital, where a team of specialists are ready to monitor your sleeping child by polysomnography (PSG). The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Halmstad has ...

Hypoxia and hypoxemia describe states of oxygen deficiency: hypoxia is deficiency in oxygenation at tissue or cellular level whilst hypoxemia is a suboptimal normal partial pressure of oxygen. Hypoxia and hypoxemia are interrelated, as untreated hypoxemia will ultimately result in hypoxia.  It should also be noted...

Mock inspections are a great way to prepare for real-life inspections from regulatory agencies such as CAP and JCAHO. But where do you start? And most importantly, what should you look for? Lou Ann Wyer, Clinical Specialist, POCT at the Virginia-based Sentara Laboratory Services and Theresa Kulik, Point-of-care...

This is the forth and final essay in a series of four essays on www.acutecaretesting.org.  The first essay, "Quality control in theory and practice – a gap analysis", raised the question: Has “the system” given front-line laboratory workers the knowledge and tools they need to make quality control decisions wisely? Or ...

How to implement improvements in hospital settings within a week Jens Weirsøe is one of Radiometer's most experienced Master Black Belts in Transactional Process Improvements (TPI or kaizen). He has facilitated 90 kaizen events in several countries (USA, Japan, Germany and Denmark), in several different industry...

This is the third in a series of four essays on www.acutecaretesting.org.  The first essay, "Quality control in theory and practice – a gap analysis", raised the question: Has “the system” given front-line laboratory workers the knowledge and tools they need to make quality control decisions wisely? Or is there a...