Nexus News

We at Nexus would like to wish you a prosperous and happy New Year. As 2011 begins, we hope that you will take a moment to re-familiarize yourself with the services we provide (see the links to the left). Whether you need outside expertise or additional resources, we look forward to helping you this year to accomplish your business objectives.

Happy New Year from Nexus!

Events

LHI classes are open for March 2011.

Partnerships

Market research partners are being sought for anatomical pathology, molecular diagnostics and general clinical chemistry studies. Contact Nexus for more information (honorariums typically provided).

Operational Metrics

January 12, 2011

In 2006 at the University of Newcastle in the United Kingdom, a psychology experiment was conducted involving payment rates for tea and coffee[1]. In the first part of the experiment, the employee break room was left as it had always been: with a change jar (or "honesty box") by the coffee machine, a picture of flowers on the wall, and a sign at eye level asking for contributions. Throughout the exercise, the "giving rate" was monitored closely and all conditions were controlled appropriately. For the next phase of the experiment, everything was left the same with the exception of one item: a picture of two human eyes was taped to the wall above the coffee machine for all to see clearly. During this period of time, the "giving rate" rose dramatically (by a factor of 3). After switching from "eyes" back to a picture of flowers, the giving rate dropped to original levels.

In industrial psychology and industrial engineering this is a well-known phenomenon. It has various names, and there are some minor differences of opinion and application, but the basic conclusion is this: if people believe they are being monitored, their conformance (and performance) increases. Attaining this "cooperative behavior" doesn't necessarily require disembodied eyes hanging over every employee's workstation. It can also be accomplished through a regular and fair set of operational metrics.

This is, of course, well known to most managers and applied exhaustively in certain industries. The manufacturing industry relies on this basic truth, and a sales force from any industry would stall without these feedback mechanisms in place. In the laboratory environment the adoption of operational feedback mechanisms has been on the rise.

A laboratory we visited recently had a large plasma television screen in the lab's accessing area that was viewable by most people within the core chemistry and hematology areas. This large plasma screen listed all tests in-process, in order of how long they had been in the system. There were color codes and real time tracking of turnaround times, so that a person could quickly look at the screen to gauge the operational situation: lots of flashing red was "bad"; white (or non-shading) was "good". This real time tracking of turnaround times is not uncommon, and more labs are adopting the practice as middleware options become available.

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Tools of the Trade: Six Sigma

The quality improvement methodology called Six Sigma can be defined in slightly different ways, but regardless of the school of thought or training entity, the target of a Six Sigma project is variation. Specifically, Six Sigma identifies and eliminates variation from a process.

Some people new to quality improvement don't see the connection between variability and performance. A simple example can be found in that which most of us see every day - rush hour traffic. Assume for a minute that every driver had the same driving habits: use of blinkers, consistent speed, acceleration habits. What if all the vehicles on the road were exactly the same? (maybe all 2010 Honda Accords) Although this would be incredibly boring, there is no doubt that the result of all this consistency would be a better driving experience and improved commute times.

Like all process improvement tools, Six Sigma has experienced good and bad press within the healthcare environment. There have been many cases where Six Sigma was critical in improving quality by reducing variability. This typically occurred in complex systems where the output required many materials and inputs. The negative experiences were likely the result of managers using the wrong tool (Six Sigma) for a job that required something different. Likewise, in the lab environment, the use of Six Sigma in its full format has had mixed results, and the typical mistake occurs in the first 5 minutes.

For more information, questions on applying these tools, and discovering the tool that works best for the situation, please contact Nexus.

Service in Focus: Lab Design & Planning

A well designed and properly configured laboratory delivers significant benefits in terms of capacity, productivity, and workflow. Nexus can help with redesigning an existing facility / department or develop a layout plan for a new facility. Nexus utilizes the latest in Computer Aided Design (CAD) technology and "Lean Thinking" to design highly functional and efficient layouts that get the most out of any laboratory space.