...London Ambulance Service Software Failure The London Ambulance Service (LAS) responds between 2000 and 2500 calls per day with a fleet of 750 vehicles, in less than three minutes. Their system was originally manually operated where details of an incident call taken by a control assistant is used to ascertain the location of an incident scene through the use of a map book. This information is then passed to a dispatch team who direct the appropriate ambulance to the incident scene through a radio call. Due to the short comings of this manual system, the LAS thought to computerize its dispatch system in 1987. The first attempt was started in the 1980’s, abandoned in 1990 and failed after spending £7.5 million. The second attempt by LAS was signed in May 1991. On the morning of Monday 26th October 1992 the LAS CAD system went live for the first time. Unfortunately there were 81 known bugs in the system at that time and it had been 10 months since the control room staff were first trained to use the software. The system had 4 primary flaws when it went live; it did not function well. Furthermore, the user interface had black spots which meant that the user could not see all the information on screen and finally, additionally, the system stored incident information even after it was not needed, which caused the system to fill up memory and fail. The first of these problems began to show during the morning rush of calls; there were a number of duplicate calls which led to a...
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...them. 10 AM it said. She stood still and watched the train rumble on as it left the station. She had travelled for so long, it seemed. That train had brought her 98 miles away from Framlingham. That noisy, smelly machine seemed closer to a home than this roaring city would ever do. If it was not for John, she would probably never have gone to London. To be honest, she was not very impressed by the bigger cities. It was as cloudy here as it was in Framlingham, the air was heavy with the smell of rain, rain which just waiting for its chance to combine the ground and the sky with gallons and gallons of water. They were supposed to meet at the Subway Gallery. She took the railway heading towards Egdware ground. From there she could easily walk to the Subway Gallery. As far as she knew, he lived near the Waterloo station. They had never met, but judging from the sound of his voice on the phone, his kind words in the thousands of mails he had written, he was the one and only. He would take the subway, and they would meet to see if it would ever work between them. Bethany walked out on the street and noticed, once again, how different London was to everything she knew. It was the capital of England, but she had never been there before, not even once. She had to admit that the old buildings looked stunning with their simple brickwork and yet scrolled details. She looked up and the...
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...costumer expectations” (Slack, Chambers & Johnston 2010 pg 40) Quality for the London eye could mean designing a structure that provides a bird’s eye view of London. Quality could also mean a high design of their processes, including ensuring that all 32 capsules are cleaned, staff are well trained in health and safety and are always professional at all times. Quality also means the London eye is safe and reliable. Quality also means that the timed admissions booking systems (TABS) is on time. Quality could also mean error free processing for their timed admissions system. Quality means that all parts for the London eye is made to specification and the assembly is made to specifications. Speed objectives: Speed within the operation could mean minimising the time it takes costumers from boarding to disembarking. Speed could also mean minimising the time it takes from designing and planning the London eye to the completion of construction to the London eye. Speed could also mean providing a high throughput rate during the year to cope with passengers demand. Example – The London eye take approximately six million people each year the London eye would have to provide a high throughput rate for the year to manage the demand. “Speed could mean the immediate stoppage of the London eye if an error is found with the wheel, a good example in March 2008 engineers found a problem, the London eye was immediately stopped and emergency repairs take place”. (Ronca 2002 pg 3) Dependability...
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...outlined the key areas it felt represented the need for reform. Each stage of the emergency care system went under review, from access to GP services and ambulance response times, to the experience of the patient upon arrival in hospital through to the provision of treatment and care packages allowing them to be discharged home again. The reports objectives were to cut ambulance response times to life-threatening emergencies, end widespread bed-blocking in the NHS, improve access to GP and other primary care professionals, minimise cancellations of on-day surgery and cut accident and emergency (A&E) waiting times to under 4 hours. This would, in the reports opinion, “bring the response to everyday events up to this first class standard” (DoH, 2001b, p. 1). A number of challenges faced this reform and were highlighted by the report. Workforce issues, for example staff capacity in A&E departments, were overstretched due to the significant increase in the demand for emergency services. To combat this, the increase in funding for the recruitment of A&E Nurses and consultants outlined in ‘The NHS Plan, A plan for investment, a plan for reform’, (DoH, 2000, p. 77), meant that at busier periods, senior presence would still be available and the demand met without causing delays to patients. The resources used by emergency care services are often fully stretched. The report highlighted how capacity in hospitals is not sufficient and this, along with delays in discharging patients...
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...Cover sheet Lessons Learned Report London Ambulance Service CONTENTS 1. Overview .........................................................................................................4 2. Management and Quality Processes ...............................................................5 3. Abnormal Events Causing Deviation............................................................. 7 4. Assessment of Specialist Methods and Tools................................................ 8 5. Project Issues and Results........................ ...................................................... 9 6. Product Estimates and Actuals ..................................................................... 10 7. Recommends for improvement of the project management method ............ 10 8. Quality Review Effectiveness........................................................................ 11 9. Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………………..12 10. Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………………………..13 1. Overview A lessons learned report defines the lessons that were learned from the project. Traditionally held during project close off but can also be done at any stage of the project’s life cycle. The purpose of the lesson learned is to use the knowledge derived from the experience: * Promote recurrence of desirable outcomes * Avoid recurrence of undesirable outcomes ...
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...During this assignment I will discuss the roles and responsibilities of Public Services attending an incident, including non-statutory, statutory and voluntary agencies and how they work together during these times. When attending an incident scene although the first thought in your mind is to help any visual casualties it is extremely important for the first service at the scene to evaluate the dangers and try to preserve any form of evidence as best as possible. This method is used to, 1. Avoid anymore casualties and 2. Help the teams working on the case and the aftermath. It’s hard to tell who will be first at the scene as it all goes down to location but majority of the time the police are called out to deal with the public. Accidents on the motorway or in highly populated parts of the town like city centres require some form of authority to avoid any members of the public getting involved. Car crashes are a perfect example for why we need the police at the scene. The ambulance crew and fire fighters will be working hard to save lives and rescue those involved, but busy commuters want to get to work, without the road being cordoned off or visible amounts of police or signs telling them to wait a lot of people will try and argue their way through. Too most commuters they might think its unessacary closing the incident/road off if theres visible ways to drive past but this is done to preserve the scene. There will be a lot of evidence in the area which is vital for the...
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...REPORT: Due Date: 1st October, 2014 Structure: • Questions are given at the end. • In total of 1500 words. • Explain in your own words. Evaluation: 10% Information Systems Failure: The Case of Computer-Aided Dispatch (Cad) System at London Ambulance Service 1. Introduction The LAS covers a geographical area of just over 600 square miles and handles emergencies for a resident population of 6.8 million people. The CAD project is one of the most frequently quoted UK-based examples of information systems failure that took place in early 1990s. The prominence of this particular case is due to the ‘safety critical’ nature of this system and the claim that 20-30 people may have lost their lives as a result of CAD failure. 2. Description of the Manual Dispatch System The manual dispatch system consists of: a) call taking, b) resource identification, and c) resource mobilization. Call Taking: Emergency calls are received by ambulance control. Control assistants write down details of incidents on pre-printed forms. The location of each incident is identified and the reference co-ordinates are recorded on the forms. The forms are then placed on a conveyer belt which transports them to a central collection point. Resource Identification: Other members of ambulance control collect the forms, review the details on the forms and decide which resource allocator should deal with each incident. The resource allocator examines the forms for a particular sector, compares the details against information...
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...means without permission. oikos case collection http://www.oikos-international.org/academic/case-collection/ oikos Case Writing Competition 2013 3rd Prize Introduction After a monthly staff meeting, a young employee approached Sweta Mangal, CEO of Ziqitza Health Care Limited (ZHL). Sanjay Rafati 1 had been hired as a financial officer the previous month, in November 2011. In view of the company’s strict ethical code, he was nervous about expressing his point of view, which was why he wanted to see Ms. Mangal in private: “The situation in one of the states where ZHL operates is getting critical. Unless the government pays what it owes us immediately, we will not be able to make payroll. We won’t be able to service our new ambulances, which will open us up to more accusations of negligence. Lives may be lost. This will devastate our morale and ruin our reputation. That bureaucrat will never stop.” Although Rafati had refrained from stating it directly, she understood that he wanted her to bribe a recalcitrant official. This particular state had been a thorn in her side for two years. While the...
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...Grade: A University of London LLB, 2nd year Tort Law Question Amber Valley Primary School was closed 6 months ago by Amber Borough Council (ABC), the local education authority, which owns all the land and buildings. The school has been standing empty while ABC attempts to find a buyer for the site. Although ABC placed fencing around the site, local residents reported that youths had broken into the site on a number of occasions. Last week a group of youths from a nearby young offenders institution, operated by Chigley Services Ltd (CS) under contract to the Home Office, broke into the disused school and set fire to it. The youths had been clearing rubbish from a neighbouring stream and were supposed to have been under the supervision of Justin and Jason, both of whom are CS employees. However, Justin and Jason had gone for a cigarette break and left the youths unsupervised at the time the break-in occurred. The fire caused damage to neighbouring property including a baker's shop owned by Mark. It is likely to be many weeks before the business can reopen and Mark stands to lose many thousands of pounds in lost profits. It later transpired that the fire would not have had time to spread to neighbouring property had the Fire Brigade acted more swiftly. The Amber Valley Fire engine was unavailable at the time and another engine had to be dispatched from Leicester. The crew got lost on the way because they put the wrong address in the sat-nav (satellite navigation)...
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...3 – Citizenship, Diversity and the Public Services Assignment 3 P7 - Report on three examples of current affairs that affect public services and citizens M4 - Analyse the effects on citizens and public services of the way that three examples of current affairs have been reported by the media. Current affairs in the UK that affect the Public Services and citizens of society are the student demonstrations, the increase of fuel prices and the cutbacks of the Public Services. These all have an effect on society and the affect it has depends on the way in which the media portrays the Public Services and citizens of society. Fuel Prices Increase - The recent fuel price increase sparked anger amongst motorists across the UK. A protest consisting of 1,000 vehicles travelling to the M56 and onto the M6 where the convoy extended by a further 500. The Police were informed of the protest and were there to patrol the protest to keep order. A statement to the press was made saying that the Police had turned back tractors and issued tickets to farmers. They also had dogs ready to release into the protesters if an outbreak occurred. This incident also gave a negative perspective of the Police Service as the media only published stories that portrayed the Police in a bad way and this affects citizens as they will not trust the Police if they act in an aggressive or ill-mannered behaviour towards those they have the duty to serve. Public Services Cutbacks - It is estimated that over the...
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...Emergency Medical Services: The Evolution Behind the System Russell Keogler CED 595: Project Seminar May 3, 2011 Dr. Richard Gatteau Abstract The purpose of this study is to determine the evolutionary process of the emergency medical services system. The research explores the impact of war and prominent military figures on the development of emergency medical services as well as civilian efforts made to establish emergency services within the public sector. The research also discusses the ways in which major medical advancements and various reports and acts of legislation played a crucial part in the development of the modern day EMS system. Overall, results show that the EMS system as we know it today is a fairly modern creation based on centuries’ worth of ideas and discoveries. Introduction In modern day America the three digits 9-1-1 signify an accessible lifeline for individuals in need of emergency medical attention. The vast system is accessible from any telephone line and provides emergency services to even the most remote locations of the country. However, in spite of the simplistic process to initiate services, the emergency medical system is very complex. Thousands of independent agencies working in different capacities must coordinate efforts to insure that the system runs efficiently. Without effective cooperation by organizations the system would undeniably fail to meet the expectations of those calling for medical aid (Limmer &...
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...companies with the acquisition of the Grey-Green bus company in London. Over the next few years, there were more bus company acquisitions, with the biggest – British Bus Group plc – in 1996 making the business one of the largest bus operators in the UK. Arriva was born in 1997, bringing together many different company backgrounds under the Arriva flag. Also in that year Arriva acquired its first business on the European mainland – Unibus Holdings in Denmark. In 1999 Arriva decided to focus its management and financial resources to enable the group to capitalise on opportunities in passenger transportation in the UK and mainland Europe. Subsequently the group successfully disposed of a number of major motor retailing and finance businesses. This process was completed by the summer of 2003 and the sale of its vehicle rental division followed in 2006. During that time Arriva has established a position as one of the leading transport services organisations in Europe with bus and train operations in the UK, Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. In addition Arriva has bus operations in Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. In the UK, Arriva also operates a bus and coach distribution business and a specialist transport business which provides health and social transport services. In 2010, Arriva was acquired by Deutsche Bahn, one of the world’s leading passenger and logistics service...
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...London Burning By Mark Arve, 7th August. An innocent lost life during a drug-raid has brought demonstrators blood boil. Revenge is on the agenda and London is paying the price. 4th August 2011, Tottenham Hale. The death of 29-year-old Mark Duggan during a drug-raid has pulled the trigger and should apparently be the cause of the riots in London theses days. The police stopped a taxi carrying Mark Duggan as a passenger on Thursday the 4th August in the evening around 18 AM. The police were trying to arrest Mark Duggan, but the arrest lead to hand-to-hand fighting, while Mark Duggan tried to resist the overpowering police officers. The officers were compelled to shoot Mark Duggan because of his threating and violent behaviour and in preparation to their own safety. The police officers fired two shoots against Mark Duggan. One of them fatally stroked his chest and killed the family man, who was father to four children. Ambulance services tried to save his life, but his life could not be rescued – he died only half an hour later. Conflict of evidence A spokesman, representing the police maintains that the police officers shot Mark Duggan in self-defence. The spokesman claims likewise that Mark Duggan first discharged shots against the police officers, before he got shot. Family and friends, who knew the 29-years-old Londoner very well are not in doubt about the cause to the death and whose fault it was. According to them, Mark Duggan was...
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...complete a Learning Development Plan (LDP). Part of the LDP involved writing a lesson plan which was then taught to a student under the supervision of my mentor. A copy of the lesson plan can be found within the LDP. An assessment plan was then used to evaluate the learning that had taken place and to assess the competency of the student. I am employed as a Paramedic Practitioner by a National Health Service (NHS) Ambulance Trust and I decided to teach the skill of Intubation to a student Paramedic. The lesson plan included assessing the level of knowledge of my student at the start in order to pitch the lesson at the right level. Gopee (2008:47) cites Ausubel et al (1978) on the view that most meaningful cognitive learning takes place as a result of interaction between the knowledge the individual already processes, and the new information that the individual encounters. Thus the most important factor influencing the learner is what the learner already knows. In order to assess my student, I used the Airway Management assessment sheet currently in use by my Ambulance Trust (NHS Ambulance Trust (name withheld) 2010), a copy of which can be found in Appendix 1. Following the assessment, I provided the student with constructive feedback on both the session and their assessment. So What? – Honey and Mumford (2000) have identified four main learning styles – Activist, Pragmatist, Reflector and Theorist and from previous exercises I had done during the mentorship module I...
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...To be a member of the National Honors Society would be a positive and rewarding experience that really will expand my high school world. While providing a service to the surrounding community it would also be an opportunity for me personally to continue to develop my character and leadership skills. I possess a unique cultural background that has helped me to procure an open-mindedness and a willingness to adapt and better understand all the people I encounter. I am at ease when leading and comfortable when receiving instructions, and if the situation requires it I am able to make responsible decisions that merit a positive outcome. I am eager to aide in causes that I am passionate about and that provide a comfort to those in need. While...
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