1,720,981 research outputs found
Embracing simplexity: the role of artificial intelligence in peri-procedural medical safety
No full textThe occupational health and safety risks of ongoing digital transformation. A knowledge management software powered literature review
No full textThe fast technical-organizational transformation undergoing, promoted by Industry 4.0 as well as other similar initiatives, partly sped up due to the Covid-19 pandemic, is radically changing actors, modes, and environments of human work. Although part of these innovations is directed at occupational health and safety (OHS), some scholars raise reasonable doubts, arguing that the same innovations even if they solve some problems, could create new ones. The 4th industrial revolution is likely introducing entirely new categories of worker risks. This review explores the evidence base that supports the latter hypothesis. Besides, it proposes an innovative and potentially useful combination of methods and computer applications. By applying the Prisma methodology, tagging one-by-one activity, and hyperlinks, the paper proposes a knowledge graph explorable in terms of semantic, logical and chronological links as well as argumentative. In the final phase, the paper synthesizes in a meta-annotation ten recurring themes and clusters that emerged in this bottom-up process of knowledge elicitation
Unveil key functions in socio-technical systems: mapping fram into a multilayer network
Full text linkNetwork theory has been widely used to describe many complex systems belonging to several fields from physics to sociology. Particularly interesting are multilayer networks which concurrently account for several types of relationships, without necessarily aggregating them. The functional resonance analysis method (FRAM) is an agnostic method (i.e., not making modeling assumptions) allowing semantically rich descriptions of the relationships among functions constituting a socio-technical system. This richness may soon become overwhelming in case of not trivial FRAM models. A multilayer network represents a promising choice for combining the long-proven experience in network theory with the FRAM's agnosticism. On these observations, this article shows how a FRAM model can be reinterpreted as a five-layer multilayer-directed network without any loss of information, even reducing the cognitive workload required for the analysts. This paper defines a methodology able to prioritize potentially critical functions through dedicated network centrality descriptors, and to generate instantiations for comparison and benchmarking of scenario-based envisioned solutions. A walk-through application in industrial operations management confirms the feasibility and validity of the proposed methodology
Lean ICU layout re-design: a simulation-based approach
Full text linkHealthcare facilities require flexible layouts that can adapt quickly in the face of various disruptions. COVID-19 confirmed this need for both healthcare and manufacturing systems. Starting with the transfer of decision support systems from manufacturing, this paper generalizes layout re-design activities for complex systems by presenting a simulation framework. Through a real case study concerning the proliferation of nosocomial cross-infection in an intensive care unit (ICU), the model developed in systems dynamics, based on a zero order immediate logic, allows reproducing the evolution of the different agencies (e.g., physicians, nurses, ancillary workers, patients), as well as of the cyber-technical side of the ICU, in its general but also local aspects. The entire global workflow is theoretically founded on lean principles, with the goal of balancing the need for minimal patient throughput time and maximum efficiency by optimizing the resources used during the process. The proposed framework might be transferred to other wards with minimal adjustments; hence, it has the potential to represent the initial step for a modular depiction of an entire healthcare facility
MARLIN Method: Enhancing Warehouse Resilience in Response to Disruptions
Full text linkBackground: Endogenous and exogenous factors impact the operational characteristics of supply chains, affecting wholesale warehouses. The survival of a warehouse is often threatened by disruptive events that alter infrastructure and performance. The emergence of COVID-19 exemplified the need for adaptability in retail goods supply chains, emphasizing the necessity for responding to external shocks. Methods: The MARLIN (Method wArehouse ResiLience dIstruptioN) method, founded on theories and models of resilience engineering is introduced. MARLIN is a practical tool designed to identify key areas requiring intervention in response to disruptive events. An empirical test was conducted in an Italian warehouse. Results: The conducted test yielded tangible results, demonstrating the efficacy of the method. It successfully pinpointed areas necessitating intervention and identified Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) associated with disruptions. The study not only underscores the importance of data collection but also highlights the often-overlooked significance of warehouse management. Conclusions: The study establishes MARLIN as a valuable asset for stakeholders involved in disruption management. Its application has proven instrumental in recognizing areas of intervention and identifying KPIs related to disruptions. Ongoing research endeavors to broaden its applicability across diverse supply chain scenarios, aiming to enhance situational awareness and enable proactive risk assessment through what-if analysis
Actionable safety analyses in socio-technical systems with myFRAM
No full textComplex systems require dedicated models, methods and techniques since safety management in socio-technical systems no longer should rely just on causality principles and structural decomposition. The overall behavior of the system should be considered as emerging from the non-linear interaction of the underlying subsystems. The Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) is one systemic approach allowing for the construction of deeply informative models. Such semantic richness entails a complexity of the resulting models significantly reflecting a useful portion of systems' reality. Unfortunately, as soon as the analyzed systems are little more than mundane, this richness of information becomes unmanageable whenever it is relying only upon qualitative methods. This paper presents myFRAM version 1.0.3, a free Excel add-on that paves the way for a multitude of systematic analysis types ranging from statistics to complex network analysis and simulation. The trust put in myFRAM by many safety experts who have already adopted it, confirms that it is a valuable tool to sustain the FRAM method. This application builds bridges to several different software and techniques currently available, expanding the potential of the method itself
Yet Another Warehouse KPI’s Collection
Full text linkWarehouses are strategic systems for all supply chains since their performances impact operations and efficiency of all direct and indirect stakeholders. Therefore, monitoring warehouses' performances constantly and real-time is getting so important, both to guarantee an effective warehouse management and to detect in advance anomalous and potentially destructive trends. The current literature about warehousing Key Performance Indicators (KPI) appears to lack an extensive collection. Classification logics are often partial or based on specific contexts. At the same time, the amount and typology of data collected on the warehouse often hinder a consistent performance monitoring. This paper aims to fill such gap and guide organizations in identifying the relevant information to gather for warehouse performance monitoring. Firstly, a scoping literature review was conducted to provide an extensive list of warehouse KPIs. Then, the collected results set the groundwork for a dynamic and interactive database called YAWKC. This tool is designed as a knowledge graph allowing for non-linear exploration of data and for continuous enrichment by experts’ contribution, representing the starting point for further knowledge generation in an explorable, dynamic and potentially ever-growing way
Gamification for industrial safety: an approach for developing resilience early warning indicators
No full textMonitor, anticipate, respond, and learn: developing and interpreting a multilayer social network of resilience abilities
Full text linkResilient performance is influenced by social interactions of several types, which may be analysed as layers of interwoven networks. The combination of these layers gives rise to a “network of networks”, also known as a multilayer network. This study presents an approach to develop and interpret multilayer networks in light of resilience engineering. Layers correspond to the four abilities of resilient systems: monitor, anticipate, respond, and learn. The proposal is applied in a 34-bed intensive care unit. To map relationships between actors in each layer, a questionnaire was devised and answered by 133 staff members, including doctors, nurses, nurse technicians, and allied health professionals. Two multilayer networks were developed: one considering that actors are 100% available and reliable (work-as-imagined) and another considering suboptimal availability and reliability (work-as-done). The multilayer networks were analysed through actor-centred (Katz centrality, degree deviation, and neighbourhood centrality) and layer-centred metrics (inter-layer correlation, and assortativity correlation). Strengths and weaknesses of social interactions at the ICU are discussed based on the adopted metrics
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