Human factors engineering: a tool for medical device evaluation in hospital procurement decision-making.
(9/23)
A human factors evaluation was conducted to inform hospital procurement decision-making in selecting a general-purpose infusion pump to be used hospital-wide. Three infusion pumps from different vendors were involved in the evaluation, which consisted of two phases: a human factors heuristic assessment of the pumps according to several criteria, and user testing in five clinical areas. The clinical areas were: Oncology, Medical/Surgical, Pediatric, ICU, and Anaesthesiology. Fourteen nurses and three anaesthetists participated in the user testing. Reasonable agreement was observed between results of both phases of the evaluation, and overall results clearly favoured one of the infusion pumps over the others. It is recommended that a human factors evaluation should be performed to influence all hospital procurement decisions when purchasing medical devices, to ensure the best devices are selected for the end users and to ultimately enhance patient safety. (+info)
Advancing health system integration through supply chain improvement.
(10/23)
Collaboration is a key element to success in the provision of sustainable and integrated healthcare services. Among the many initiatives undertaken to improve service quality and reduce costs, collaboration among hospitals in Ontario has been difficult to achieve; however, voluntary collaboration is vital to achieving transformation of the magnitude envisioned by system leaders. (+info)
Hospitals' strategies for orchestrating selection of physician preference items.
(11/23)
This article analyzes hospitals' strategies to shape physicians' behavior and counter suppliers' power in purchasing physician preference items. Two models of standardization are limitations on the range of manufacturers or products (the "formulary" model) and price ceilings for particular item categories (the "payment-cap" model), both requiring processes to define product equivalencies often with inadequate product comparison data. The formulary model is more difficult to implement because of physicians' resistance to top-down dictates. The payment-cap model is more feasible because it preserves physicians' choice while also restraining manufacturers' power. Hospitals may influence physicians' involvement through a process of orchestration that includes committing to improve clinical facilities, scheduling, and training and fostering a culture of mutual trust and respect. (+info)
Value-based purchasing for medical devices.
(12/23)
State systems Advance Planning Document (APD) process. Final rule.
(13/23)
The Advance Planning Document (APD) process governs the procedure by which States obtain approval for Federal financial participation in the cost of acquiring automated data processing equipment and services. This final rule reduces the submission requirements for lower-risk information technology (IT) projects and procurements and increases oversight over higher-risk IT projects and procurements by making technical changes, conforming changes and substantive revisions in the documentation required to be submitted by States, counties, and territories for approval of their Information Technology plans and acquisition documents. (+info)
Interview. The story of Advanced BioHealing: commercializing bioengineered tissue products. Mr Tozer speaks to Emily Culme-Seymour, Assistant Commissioning Editor.
(14/23)
Stockpiling supplies for the next influenza pandemic.
(16/23)
Faced with increasing concerns about the likelihood of an influenza pandemic, healthcare systems have been challenged to determine what specific medical supplies that should be procured and stockpiled as a component of preparedness. Despite publication of numerous pandemic planning recommendations, little or no specific guidance about the types of items and quantities of supplies needed has been available. The primary purpose of this report is to detail the approach of 1 healthcare system in building a cache of supplies to be used for patient care during the next influenza pandemic. These concepts may help guide the actions of other healthcare systems. (+info)