Evaluation of Medical Officers' Certificate Programme (MOCP) Course Competency Based Learning

Medical Officers' Certificate Programme (MOCP) is a 6 months training programme in Pediatrics/Medicine at Medical colleges wherein doctors work like postgraduate students, learn various OPD, IPD, (Out Patients and In Patient Department) procedures, attain hands on skills, perform day and night duties, attend postgraduate training programmes and specialty clinics. This is a course unique to Maharashtra. It has been designed to overcome shortage of Pediatrians & Physicians in the state. Public Health Dept deputed 28 Medical Officers of Primary Health Centers to various Medical Colleges. At the end of 6 months training course they were evaluated during 2012-2013.It was done by questionnaire used before and after training. It was observed that OPD increased by 24% and IPD by 54%. There was a decrease in the number of cases referred to tertiary centers by 24%, post MOCP training. Infant immunization increased by 35% after training. Number of children with severe acute malnutrition/moderate acute malnutrition treated increased by 22%, neonatal emergencies, resuscitation, sepsis, jaundice patients treated, increased by 36%. No of adults with diarrhoea and snake bite treated increased by 40% & 63% respectively. No. of ECGs taken and myocardial infarctions managed also has shown rising trend. Thus, there was tremendous benefit to the patients after MOCP training. Skill of doctors was found to have enhanced. It is therefore recommended that such novel trainings should be imparted in other states of India too

Vaccine Policy in India

India enjoyed early initial successes in vaccine development and indigenous production of vaccines in the public sector. But the country now faces a growing gap between the demand for and supply of essential vaccines

The service-productivity learning cockpit – a business intelligence tool for service enterprises

The paper describes the development of an agent-based simulation tool for hospital managers to manage their productivity of services, especially in the context of supporting services like patient transport logistics. The learning cockpit allows hospital managers to see how the change of inputs changes the overall perceived customer values of all stakeholders and therefore to get a visualization of the impacts their decisions cause. The paper introduces the general research domain service-productivity, followed by a description of the development steps of artefact creation. The learning cockpit is part of a research project called BELOUGA, which is funded by the German government

Electrifying urban ridesourcing fleets at no added cost through efficient use of charging infrastructure

Ridesourcing fleets present an opportunity for rapid uptake of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) but adoption has largely been limited to small pilot projects. Lack of charging infrastructure presents a major barrier to scaling up, but little public information exists on the infrastructure needed to support ridesourcing electrification. With data on ridesourcing trips for New York City and San Francisco, and using agent-based simulations of BEV fleets, we show that given a sparse network of three to four 50 kW chargers per square mile, BEVs can provide the same level of service as internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) at lower cost. This suggests that the cost of charging infrastructure is not a significant barrier to ridesourcing electrification. With coordinated use of charging infrastructure across vehicles, we also find that fleet performance becomes robust to variation in battery range and placement of chargers. Our analysis suggests that mandates on ridesourcing such as the California Clean Miles Standard could achieve electrification without significantly increasing the cost of ridesourcing services

Enhanced visible fluorescence in highly transparent Al-doped ZnO film by surface plasmon coupling of Ag nanoparticles

ZnO:Al (AZO) film has been deposited on quartz substrate by Pulsed laser deposition and showed monophasic hexagonal structure of c-axis oriented nanorods upto 80 nm in height. AZO film was optimally conjugated with Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) in a hybrid nanostructure to achieve significant enhancement in the visible fluorescence emission. Augmented near field and extinction spectra of shape tailored Ag NPs and their dimers are simulated through FDTD method, and a direct association with fluorescence enhancement is established. Such plasmon-enhanced visible emission from a transparent conducting oxide could be very important for solar cell applications

Cardan angle rotation sequence effects on first-metatarsophalangeal joint kinematics: implications for measuring hallux valgus deformity

BACKGROUND: There currently are no recommended standards for reporting kinematics of the first-metatarsophalangeal joint. This study compared 2 different rotation sequences of Cardan angles, with implications for understanding the measurement of hallux valgus deformity. METHODS: Thirty-one women (19 hallux valgus; 12 controls) participated. All were scanned in an open-upright magnetic resonance scanner, their foot posed to simulate the gait conditions of midstance, heel-off, and terminal stance. Using computer processes, selected tarsals were reconstructed into virtual bone models and embedded with principal-axes coordinate systems, from which the rotation matrix between the hallux and first metatarsal was decomposed into Cardan angles. Joint angles were then compared using a within factors (rotation sequence and gait condition) repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). RESULTS: Only the transverse plane-first sequence consistently output incremental increases of dorsiflexion and abduction across gait events in both groups. There was an interaction (F ≥ 25.1; p < 0.001). Follow-up comparisons revealed angles were different (p < 0.05) at terminal stance. CONCLUSIONS: Different rotation sequences yield different results. Extracting the first rotation in the transverse plane allows for the resting alignment of the hallux to deviate from the sagittal plane. Therefore, representing first-metatarsophalangeal joint kinematics with the transverse plane-first rotation sequence may be preferred, especially in cases of hallux valgus deformity

Application of six sigma methodology to reduce defects of a grinding process

Six Sigma is a data-driven leadership approach using specific tools and methodologies that lead to fact-based decision making. This paper deals with the application of the Six Sigma methodology in reducing defects in a fine grinding process of an automotive company in India. The DMAIC (Define–Measure–Analyse–Improve–Control) approach has been followed here to solve the underlying problem of reducing process variation and improving the process yield. This paper explores how a manufacturing process can use a systematic methodology to move towards world-class quality level. The application of the Six Sigma methodology resulted in reduction of defects in the fine grinding process from 16.6 to 1.19%. The DMAIC methodology has had a significant financial impact on the profitability of the company in terms of reduction in scrap cost, man-hour saving on rework and increased output. A saving of approximately US$2.4 million per annum was reported from this project