The interaction effects of automation and population aging on labor market.

Automation and population aging are two major forces that will shape the nature of works in the future. However, it is not clear how these forces will interact with each other and affect the labor market. This paper examines the interaction effects of computerization and population aging on the labor market. We found that computerization and population aging have large and statistically significant effects on employment growth but not earnings growth. Also, their interaction terms are statistically significant only for employment growth but not for earnings growth.

Poor health as a potential risk factor for job loss due to automation: the case of Norway.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to quantify the extent to which health characteristics of workers are related to the potential risk of experiencing job displacement due to automation. METHODS: Linking the 2015 Norwegian Statistics on Income and Living Conditions survey (n=6393) with predicted probabilities of automation by occupation, we used Kruskal-Wallis tests and multivariate generalised linear models to assess the association between long-standing illnesses and risk of job automation. RESULTS: Individuals with long-standing illnesses face substantially greater risks of losing their job due to automation. Whereas the average risk of job automation is 57% for men and 49% for women with long-standing illnesses, the risk is only 50% for men and 44% for women with limitations (p<0.001). Controlling for age, having a long-standing illness significantly increases the relative risk of facing job automation among men (risk ratio (RR) 1.13, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.19), as well as women (RR 1.11, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.17). While, among men, the association between long-standing illness and risk of job automation remains significant when controlling for education and income, it becomes insignificant among women. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with poor health are likely to carry the highest burden of technological change in terms of worsening employment prospects because of working in occupations disproportionally more likely to be automated. Although the extent of technology-related job displacement will depend on several factors, given the far-reaching negative consequences of job loss on health and well-being, this process represents a significant challenge for public health and social equity.

Comparison on Human Resource Requirement between Manual and Automated Dispensing Systems.

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to compare human resource requirement among manual, automated, and modified automated dispensing systems. METHODS: Data were collected from the pharmacy department at the 2100-bed university hospital (Siriraj Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand). Data regarding the duration of the medication distribution process were collected by using self-reported forms for 1 month. The data on the automated dispensing machine (ADM) system were obtained from 1 piloted inpatient ward, whereas those on the manual system were the average of other wards. Data on dispensing, returned unused medication, and stock management processes under the traditional manual system and the ADM system were from actual activities, whereas the modified ADM system was modeled. The full-time equivalent (FTE) of each model was estimated for comparison. RESULTS: The result showed that the manual system required 46.84 FTEs of pharmacists and 132.66 FTEs of pharmacy technicians. By adding pharmacist roles on screening and verification under the ADM system, the ADM system required 117.61 FTEs of pharmacists. Replacing counting and filling medication functions by ADM has decreased the number of pharmacy technicians to 55.38 FTEs. After the modified ADM system canceled the return unused medication process, FTEs requirement for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians decreased to 69.78 and 51.90 FTEs, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The ADM system decreased the workload of pharmacy technicians, whereas it required more time from pharmacists. However, the increased workload of pharmacists was associated with more comprehensive patient care functions, which resulted from the redesigned work process.

Automated percutaneous lumbar discectomy for the contained herniated lumbar disc: a systematic assessment of evidence.

BACKGROUND: Lumbar disc prolapse, protrusion, and extrusion account for less than 5% of all low back problems, but are the most common causes of nerve root pain and surgical interventions. The typical rationale for traditional surgery is an effort to provide more rapid relief of pain and disability. It should be noted that the majority of patients will recover with conservative management. The primary rationale for any form of surgery for disc prolapse associated with radicular pain is to relieve nerve root irritation or compression due to herniated disc material. The primary modality of treatment continues to be either open or microdiscectomy, but several alternative techniques including automated percutaneous lumbar discectomy (APLD) have been described. However, there is a paucity of evidence for all decompression techniques, specifically alternative techniques including automated and laser discectomy. STUDY DESIGN: A systematic review of the literature. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of APLD. METHODS: A comprehensive evaluation of the literature relating to automated lumbar disc decompression was performed. The literature was evaluated according to Cochrane review criteria for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) criteria was utilized for observational studies. A literature search was conducted of English language literature through PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane library, systematic reviews, and cross references from reviews and systematic reviews. The level of evidence was classified as Level I, II, or III with 3 subcategories in Level II based on the quality of evidence developed by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). OUTCOME MEASURES: Pain relief was the primary outcome measure. Other outcome measures were functional improvement, improvement of psychological status, opioid intake, and return to work. Short-term effectiveness was defined as one year or less, whereas, long-term effectiveness was defined as greater than one year. RESULTS: Based on USPSTF criteria, the indicated evidence for APLD is Level II-2 for short- and long-term relief. LIMITATIONS: Paucity of RCTs in the literature. CONCLUSION: This systematic review indicated Level II-2 evidence for APLD. APLD may provide appropriate relief in properly selected patients with contained lumbar disc prolapse.

Medication cart-filling time, accuracy, and cost with an automated dispensing system.

Medication cart filling with an automated dispensing system was compared with manual cart filling with respect to personnel time, costs, and accuracy. At a 650-bed tertiary-care medical center, technician cart filling and pharmacist cart checking were timed for the existing manual system and for the Baxter ATC-212 automated dispensing system. Subsequently, carts filled with each system were checked for accuracy of dispensing. On the basis of drugs used in the automated system over three months, drug acquisition and dispensing costs were calculated for automated and manual cart filling; the costs of personnel time were also compared. Daily cart filling time for technicians was significantly less with the automated system. The savings of pharmacist time was not significant; pharmacists had to cut the strip-packaged drugs into individual doses as they checked patients' medications. For both systems, errors were found in fewer than 1% of the doses (0.84% for the manual system and 0.65% for the automated system). Drug costs were higher with the automated system; acquisition prices for the bulk drugs purchased for use in the dispensing machine were higher than the prices of the same products in unit dose packaging. Personnel time saved amounted to less than 0.5 full-time equivalent. With the automated system, overall time savings was not great enough to substantially affect pharmacy operations, and drug costs were higher.