Purchasing technology: a few things to consider.

Standard-form software and hardware contracts need critical review to ensure that the product meets the needs of the practice.

Material & equipment, procurement & maintenance: Impact on blood safety.

Blood Transfusion Safety is dependent on effectively organised and managed blood services, which have adequate financial resources, skilled manpower, appropriate infrastructure and quality management systems in place. 80% of the world's population has access to 20% of the supply blood products, of which little is consistently safe. HIV highlighted the importance of blood safety. The lack of effective blood services in low human development index (LHDI), developing countries, has lead to international funding and capacity building for more than three decades. The initial strategies focused on providing HIV testing reagents to prevention transmission, however this only addresses one part of blood safety. Blood safety is not only dependent on preventing HIV transmission. In many populations there are other infectious agents, which have a higher prevalence. Ensuring the correct blood is provided to the patient depends on: well managed services with effective leadership and adequate budgets; capacity building and retention of skilled experienced staff; availability of laboratory equipment, correctly maintained; blood cold chain systems; procedures for tendering, purchasing and ensuring an unbroken supply of reagents and consumables; and quality management systems. Barriers for simplified effective tendering, procurement and contracting require urgent attention and coordination of all funding organisations to ensure an unbroken supply of reagents.

Reducing asthma triggers in schools: recommendations for effective policies, regulations, and legislation.

While 31 million Americans have been diagnosed with asthma, children are most severely affected. Asthma also is common among teachers, indicating that the school building environment may be associated with asthma prevalence among occupants. Children are sensitive to environmental pollutants, which are more concentrated in indoor air environments. Schools are a significant source of indoor air pollutants. Yet little research has addressed the causal relationship between asthma and specific levels of indoor pollutants. Indoor air quality is seldom controlled in schools in a way that minimizes such exposures. While few laws limit indoor air pollutants in schools, some laws outline or mandate practices that can control exposures. This report presents recommendations for laws and regulations that control and, ideally, prevent indoor air quality problems and aims to reduce or mitigate such disease.

Steam generator hand hole shielding.

Seabrook Station is an 1198 MWE Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) that began commercial operation in 1990. Expensive and dose intensive Steam Generator Replacement Projects among PWR operators have led to an increase in steam generator preventative maintenance. Most of this preventative maintenance is performed through access ports in the shell of the steam generator just above the tube sheet known as secondary side hand holes. Secondary side work activities performed through the hand holes are typically performed without the shielding benefit of water in the secondary side of the steam generator. An increase in cleaning and inspection work scope has led to an increase in dose attributed to steam generator secondary side maintenance. This increased work scope and the station goal of maintaining personnel radiation dose ALARA led to the development of the shielding concept described in this article. This shield design saved an estimated 2.5 person-rem (25 person-Smv) the first time it was deployed and is expected to save an additional 50 person-rem (500 person-mSv) over the remaining life of the plant.

VA contracts give unfair advantage to Picker--study.

Service contracts for computed tomography scanners in Dept. of Veterans Affairs hospitals have given an unfair advantage to Picker International, according to a study by the VA's inspector general's office. The report is the latest round in a controversy that has pitted Picker against at least two independent service organizations and enmeshed it in a $1.65 billion lawsuit.