An exploratory study into the use of Lean Six Sigma to reduce medication errors in the Norwegian public healthcare context

Purpose: Medication errors are a significant cause of injury in Norwegian hospitals. The purpose of this study is to explore how Lean Six Sigma (LSS) has been used in the Norwegian public health-care context to reduce medication errors. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed method approach was used to gather data from participants working in the four regions served by the Norway health authorities. A survey questionnaire was distributed to 38 health-care practitioners and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 health-care practitioners. Findings: The study finds that the implementation of LSS in the Norwegian public health-care context is still in its infancy. This is amidst several challenges faced by Norwegian hospitals such as the lack of top-management support, lack of LSS training and coaching and a lack of awareness around the benefits of LSS in health care. Research limitations/implications: Because of the large geographical area, it was difficult to reach participants from all health regions in Norway. However, the study managed to assess the current status of LSS implementation through the participants’ perspectives. This is a fruitful area for future research whereby an action research methodology could be used. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical study into the use of LSS methodology in reducing medication errors. In addition, this study is valuable for health-care practitioners and professionals as a guideline to achieve the optimal benefit of LSS implementation to reduce medication errors

Effect of Nano Additives on Friction in a Bentonite Water Based System

Master's thesis in Petroleum engineeringThis thesis will present relevant literature study and theory for the experimental and simulation parts. Several water based drilling fluids containing high and low concentrations of TiN, MoS2 and Graphene in nano-size were formulated and characterised in terms of rheology, frictional behaviour, viscoelasticity and filtrate loss. A performance simulation study on torque, drag and hydraulics were executed for the best selected fluid systems. From overall studies, the results show among others that: ⋅ The nano type and concentration in various polymers improve the conventional drilling fluid system in terms such as rheology, lubricity and viscoelastic properties. ⋅ The addition of 0.04 wt% and 0.16 wt% of MoS2 in the conventional fluid system resulted in a friction reduction of 34.8% and 44.7% respectively. In terms of torque and drag reduction, the simulation results exhibited that the fluids allow for 15.2% and 25.9% extended drilling as compared to the conventional nano-free system. ⋅ The addition of 0.03 wt% and 0.04 wt% of TiN in the conventional fluid system resulted in a friction reduction of 23.6% and 16.7% respectively. In terms of torque and drag reduction, the simulation results exhibited that the fluids allow for 9.9% and 14.5% extended drilling as compared to the conventional nano-free system. ⋅ The addition of 0.01 wt% and 0.02 wt% of Graphene in the conventional fluid system resulted in a friction reduction of 8.3% and 10.1% respectively. In terms of torque and drag reduction, the simulation results exhibited that this fluid allows for 4.0% and 4.7% extended drilling as compared to the conventional nano-free system. ⋅ All of the tested fluids exhibited the best friction reduction with low concentrations of nano. Rheology testing exhibited that the filtrate loss decreased for very low concentrations of TiN and MoS2, while it increased for higher concentrations. The filtrate loss increased for all concentrations of Graphene. The objective of this thesis was to investigate if it was possible to improve the rheology and the lubricating effect of conventional water based mud by adding nanoparticles to the fluid system. The results show that the application of nano in a bentonite water based system could have the potential to replace the oil based mud in terms of low friction performance

An exploratory study into the use of Lean Six Sigma to reduce medication errors in the Norwegian public healthcare context

Purpose: Medication errors are a significant cause of injury in Norwegian hospitals. The purpose of this study is to explore how Lean Six Sigma has been utilised in the Norwegian public healthcare context to reduce medication errors. Design/Methodology/Approach: A mixed method approach was used to gather data from participants working in the four regions served by the Norway Health Authorities. A survey questionnaire was distributed to 38 healthcare practitioners and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 healthcare practitioners. Findings: The study finds that the implementation of Lean Six Sigma in the Norwegian public healthcare context is still in its infancy. This is amidst the several challenges faced by Norwegian hospitals, such as a lack of top management support, lack of LSS training and coaching and a lack of awareness around the benefits of LSS in healthcare. Research limitations/Implications: Due to the large geographical area, it was difficult to reach participants from all health regions in Norway. However, the study managed to assess the current status of LSS implementation through the participants perspectives. This is a fruitful area for future research whereby an action research methodology could be employed. Originality/Value: To the best of the authors knowledge, this is the first empirical study into the use of LSS methodology in reducing medication errors. In addition, this study is valuable for healthcare practitioners and professionals as a guideline to achieve the optimal benefit of Lean and Six Sigma implementation in order to reduce medication errors.peer-reviewe