Evaluation of industrial engineering students’ competencies for process improvement in hospitals

The failures to properly educate students about process improvement can be seen as major factor leading to increased risks of patient safety and increased wastes in hospital settings. The purpose of this research was two-fold: 1) to identify characteristics that explain the efficacy of Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) based-tools while used by Industrial Engineering (IE) students on multidisciplinary teams in hospital; 2) to identify competencies needed by IEs for effective process improvement in hospital using PDSA based-tools. Exploratory mixed method design approach with survey study, unstructured interviews, and focus group discussions was used to collect the data. A regression analysis was used to identify PDSA based-tool characteristics perceived by IE students as instrumental for process improvement. Next, the abductive inference was applied to analyze qualitative data in order to investigate competencies needed for effective process improvement using PDSA based-tools.Using regression analysis, we found the brainstorming via visualization, recognizing root-cause(s) of the problem and selecting improvement measures via linking the process flow with task(s) characteristics to be the significant characteristics. From qualitative data analysis, we learned that IE students strived in technical analysis but lacked competencies in analyzing qualitative data needed for change implementation efforts. There is increasing evidence that success in achieving process improvement goals is at least partially attributable to implementation processes and contexts and not just to the nature of the technical solution. Therefore, IE students interested in working in hospitals must develop new competencies related to qualitative data analysis to manage change initiatives.Peer Reviewe

Multimodalność wtórna i widzialność tomograficzna na przykładzie Nakarmić kamień Bronki Nowickiej

The research paper presents the concept of secondarily multimodal work, which problematizes the status of e.g.: visual elements added to further editions of an initially monomodal text in the context of its interpretation. This issue is discussed using the example of Bronka Nowicka’s volume To Feed a Stone (2015; 2017), which was expanded in the second edition with photographs and tomographs of the objects described. The analysis shows that some added graphic elements break up the coherence of the narrative and both reinforce and undermine the mimesis in the work. They function based on the principle of a Derridean supplement: they complement and condition the content of the verbal passages. The article concludes with a study of art volumes that are part of Nowicka’s intermedia project focusing on exploring the relationship between image and memory.The research paper presents the concept of secondarily multimodal work, which problematizes the status of e.g.: visual elements added to further editions of an initially monomodal text in the context of its interpretation. This issue is discussed using the example of Bronka Nowicka’s volume To Feed a Stone (2015; 2017), which was expanded in the second edition with photographs and tomographs of the objects described. The analysis shows that some added graphic elements break up the coherence of the narrative and both reinforce and undermine the mimesis in the work. They function based on the principle of a Derridean supplement: they complement and condition the content of the verbal passages. The article concludes with a study of art volumes that are part of Nowicka’s intermedia project focusing on exploring the relationship between image and memory

Encyclopaedierotic as (Auto)biofiction: Roland Barthes par Ewa Kuryluk

The article presents an interpretation of a postmodern epistolary novel – Encyclopaedierotic, focused on biofictional and autofictional writing strategies, It also recreates Ewa Kuryluk’s criticism of A Lover’s Discourse: Fragments by Roland Barthes. It introduces the connections between the veritable and fictitious biography of the semiologist and uncovers the meaning of the most significant “biographical transpositions.” It reveals the relationship between Kuryluk’s literary doppelgänger and herself: they are not completely identical. The nature of this relation is metonymical: the activities of literary Ewa are the traces of writer’s actions, a fact that raises issues of creative impossibility and calls into question the choice of making Barthes the main protagonist of Encyclopaedierotic

Pragmatic evaluation of the Toyota Production System (TPS) analysis procedure for problem solving with entry-level nurses

Medication errors occurring in hospitals are a growing national concern. These medication errors and their related costs (or wastes) are seen as major factors leading to increased patient safety risks and increased waste in the hospital setting. This article presents a study in which sixteen entry-level nurses utilized a Toyota Production System (TPS) analysis procedure to solve medication delivery problems at one community hospital. The objective of this research was to study and evaluate the TPS analysis procedure for problem solving with entry-level nurses. Personal journals, focus group discussions, and a survey study were used to collect data about entry-level nurses’ perceptions of using the TPS problem solving approach to study medication delivery. A regression analysis was used to identify characteristics that enhance problem solving efforts. In addition, propositions for effective problem solving by entry-level nurses to aid in the reduction of medication errors in healthcare delivery settings are offeredPeer Reviewe

3D scanners in orthodontics—Current knowledge and future perspectives—A systematic review

Background: Nowadays the use of intraoral scanners has become a routine practice in orthodontics. It allows the introduction of many treatment innovations. One should consider to what extent intraoral scanners have influenced the everyday orthodontic practice and in what direction should the further research in this field be conducted. This study is aimed to systematically review and synthesize available controlled trials investigating the accuracy and efficacy of intraoral scanners for orthodontic purpose to provide clinically useful information and to direct further research in this field. Methods: A literature search of free text and MeSH terms was performed by using MedLine (PubMed), Scopus, Web of Science and Embase. The search engines were used to find studies on application of intraoral scanners in orthodontics (from 1950 to 30 September 2020). The following keywords were used: “intraoral scanners AND efficiency AND accuracy AND orthodontics”. Results: The number of potential identified articles was 71, including 61 from PubMed, two from Scopus, three from Web of Science and five from Embase. After removal of duplicates, 67 full-text articles were analyzed for inclusion criteria, 16 of them were selected and finally included in the qualitative synthesis. Conclusions: There are plenty of data available on accuracy and efficacy of different scanners. Scanners of the same generation from different manufacturers have almost identical accuracy. This is the reason why future similar research will not introduce much to the orthodontics. The challenge for the coming years is to find new applications of digital impressions in the orthodontic practice

Impact of Green Tea (Camellia Sinensis) on periodontitis and caries. Systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: The oral health-promoting effects of green tea are attributed to its polyphenol components. Aim of this work was to systematically review the literature in search for clinical trials assessing green tea for managing periodontitis and caries. Methods: Randomized clinical trials comparing the efficacy of green tea versus control groups in oral hygiene and gingival health; periodontitis; caries; periodontal pathogens number; Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus spp. Meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis were performed. Literature searches were carried out using MedLine (PubMed), Scopus, and the Cochrane Library. Eighteen studies (870 subjects) were included. Results: Green tea treatment had medium positive effect size in reducing GI (SMD: 0.50; 95%CI: −0.02/1.01); PI (SMD: 0.54; 95%CI: 0.14/0.95); GBI (SMD: 0.58; 95%CI: −0.41/1.56) and BOP (SMD: 0.52; 95%CI: −0.57/1.60) in respect to the control group. Splitting to subgroups, green tea showed a small neg- ative effect in the chlorhexidine control groups. Green tea treatment had medium positive effect size in reducing CAL (SMD 0.58; 95%CI: −0.49/1.65) and large positive effect size in reducing PPD (SMD:1.02; 95%CI: 0.45/1.59). Conclusion: Even if the results are encouraging, there is insufficient evidence to recommend the use of green tea formulation as first choice treatment for gingivitis, periodontitis and caries

Expression of metallothionein (MT) and gluthatione s-transferase pi (SGTP) in the bone marrow of patients with myeloproliferative disorders (MPD)

Overexpression of SGTP and/or MT may contribute to various carcinogenic processes and to resistance to anticancer treatment. The importance of these proteins, although clearly established in solid tumours, has not been fully understood in haematopoietic neoplasm. The aim of this study was to determine the expression of MT and SGTP in the bone marrow of patients with MPD. Twenty paraffin-embedded bone marrow core biopsy specimens from newly diagnosed patients with MPD were evaluated — osteomyelofibrosis (OMF), n = 9 and chronic myelocytic leukaemia (CML), n = 11. We demonstrate increased SGTP and MT expression in the bone marrow of MPD patients. In our study levels of MT in OMF patients were higher than in CML. This suggests that MT expression may correlate with bone marrow fibrosis. These data, although based on a relatively small number of patients, raise the possibility that SGTP and MT may play a role in the pathogenesis of MPD. The clinical significance of this phenomenon needs further investigation