Welcome to thepulse, Gael Ltd's quarterly Q-Pulse e-mail newsletter.

Well, the big day has finally come and gone. After a lot of stress and hard-work, the Q-Pulse launch on the 16th of June passed successfully. To help make your migration to the new Q-Pulse pain-free, this edition will look at how to upgrade and the new training available to help with the process. Amongst other things, it will also look at the skills surgeons will be learning from pilots and details of the forthcoming Society of Food Technology Event being sponsored by Gael.

Back to top

While the minds of at least 50% of the population have been on what's happening in Germany, the minds of almost 100% of the Gael employees have had their attention focused on the 16th of June. This wasn't for the Argentina v Serbia Montenegro group game. The 16th of June saw the official release date of the new Q-Pulse. We know you can’t wait to get your hands on Q-Pulse so we’ve put together some instructions on upgrading.

Are you ready to upgrade?

The software has now been released and is being supplied to existing Q-Pulse users as part of a phased upgrade programme. If you are interested in being one of the first to upgrade, please contact info@gaelquality.com and we will contact you to verify the readiness of your organisation to upgrade.

"Why upgrade?" roadshow near you

When a new piece of software is released, the first question that probably springs to mind is, how will it benefit me? All too often upgrades promise the Earth but just don't deliver. The new Q-Pulse is different.

We will be holding roadshows to let you know how Q-Pulse can help you get the most out of the management of compliance. The agenda will cover the differences between Version 4.2 and the new Q-Pulse, the new services available to you, how to deal with data migration and details on the new flexible licensing options.

Sessions will be held across the country in

• Blue Mountain, Bracknell - 6th Sep
• Ricoh Stadium, Coventry - 7th Sep
• Reebok Stadium De-Veere Hotel, Bolton - 12th Sep
• Dakota Eurocentral Hotel, M8 Eurocentral Junction,
  Central Scotland- 14th Sep

Places will be limited so please indicate your interest by clicking here

Co-ordinate your upgrade programme

We asked you prior to the launch, if you were ready for the transition to the new Q-Pulse, if your IT departments are aware of the technical requirements, whether or not your users were aware of the change and what the benefits would be for them. How did you answer? Are you prepared?

Check below to find out.

Do you meet our minimum technical requirements?

Client

Server

Do your users know what the changes and benefits of the new
Q-Pulse will be?

Have a look at our Product differences brochure to see for yourself how the new Q-Pulse can help your organisation introduce organisation-wide improvements.

Our Resource Centre also has information on how other companies have used Q-Pulse to drive their organisations forward.

Let our Migration Manager help you

Gregor McCall has recently joined the Gael team as Manager of the Q-Pulse upgrade programme. He has many years of experience in supporting clients migrate to new software solutions and can help you shape your training programme as well as advise on the deployment options available to you. If your organisation is looking to extend its deployment of Q-Pulse throughout your organisation and you wish to learn about the scope available to you, please email Gregor gregorm@gaelquality.com for more information.

Back to top

Are you an existing user of Q-Pulse and concerned about transitioning to the new Q-Pulse?

Does the thought of learning a new management system keep you awake at night?

We understand that migrating to a new version of your compliance management system might be stressful, so we are offering a new Q-Pulse training course specifically for existing users to aid with the upgrade process.

The purpose of this service is to ensure that you feel confident and ready to use Q-Pulse to the full extent of its capabilities straight away. It will also enable your existing Q-Pulse skills to be transferred across to the new system. In just one day, you will be able to find out the improvements that Q-Pulse will add to your compliance management system and discover the organisation-wide advancement opportunities presented by Q-Pulse.

As an individual, the upgrade training will mean you are fully aware of the new Q-Pulse features and how you can use them instantly in your own environment to result in personal and organisational benefits. You will learn how to:

• navigate your way around the new user interface
• create, save and publish personal search folders
• customise and personalise your audit calendar
• customise the Q-Pulse LaunchPad to suit your personal profile
• create customised CAPA recording wizards

The course is for existing Q-Pulse users with a current Q-Pulse version 4.2 support contract who wish to migrate to the new Q-Pulse and who already have a sound understanding of Q-Pulse 4.2 functionality. Of course, we have courses suitable for new users too. Have a look at the training section on www.gaelquality.com to find out more information on such courses.

The course lasts for one day and will ensure you don’t miss out on any of the benefits of the new system from the start and will help you to make the very best of all the new functions. The courses will be held at various public venues throughout the UK and Ireland in October and the cost will be £175 per attendee.

To register an interest in attending, contact us on + 44 (0) 1355 593 400 or info@gaelquality.com.

Back to top

One of the biggest and most important changes to Q-Pulse is the inclusion of a mapping tool, MindGenius. It is unique and powerful and means individuals and organisations can quickly gather and understand information regarding change. The addition of MindGenius within Q-Pulse transforms the product from simple compliance record management to a powerful application that enables you to make the right decisions for you and your organisation.

The Q-Pulse mapping tool will reduce the time and effort required to assess, investigate and understand what needs to be improved. It will also help you to identify potential solutions, define which is the most appropriate and to convince others that your ideas and plans will make for successful implementation and significant payback.

It can be used in conjunction with the Analysis module in Q-Pulse to uncover trends and patterns and to collect and organise all data to implement a change. It can also be used everywhere you need to plan such as for a meeting or an Audit. The inclusion of the mapping tool will lead to the discovery of new and important solutions to age-old problems.

Take a look at the Customer Zone on our website to view the recorded session on how to use MindGenius to undertake a performance related Cause and Effect Analysis.

There are also lots of sample maps and templates included within MindGenius to help you get mapping straightaway. To get the hang of the mapping tool should only take a few minutes. The three functions you will mainly use are Type-and-Return, Drag-and-Drop and Map Explorer. These three functions will help you to rapidly gather and record information in brainstorming and planning sessions.

MindGenius is a powerful application in its own right, not just when used with Q-Pulse, and is particularly useful for brainstorming, problem solving or assessing the impact of any change proposed.

To find out how Bristow Helicopters slashed £3.8 million off their operating costs, click here. To find out how to use it for a variety of tasks including Document Control, Planning for Audits, or Management Reviews, check out the Resource Centre at www.gaelquality.com.

"MindGenius ... - I am its biggest fan!! This is the best software I have ever used and I could not do my job effectively without it - How did I ever manage before I had it? I use the mind maps for just about everything related to Safety and Quality..."

Andrew Lawson, Dubai Air Wing

Back to top

After recent scare stories in the press, food companies are more aware than ever of the importance of food safety standards. If the worst was to happen and a company ended up in court over food safety issues, there is often a fear of what will happen, often due to not knowing what to expect. With this in mind, the Society of Food Hygiene Technology has organised an event to allow delegates to experience a day in court without being the one in the dock.

Gael Ltd is proud to be sponsoring the venue at "A day in court, Trial and Error," which will enable delegates to experience trial surroundings and proceedings in a Sheriff Court. It is taking place on Thursday, 21st September 2006.

Being taken to court is one of the worst things that could happen to a food company. It usually results in loss of revenue through a variety of reasons, including losing customers, paying trial fees and lawyers’ costs and paying compensation or fines. It can also ruin their reputations in the long-term and gives competitors a stick to beat them with.

The mock trial is a unique chance to take part in such an experience without the stresses involved when on trial. It will give the delegates the opportunity to experience a court case and gain valuable knowledge of the proceedings. If the worst was to happen, and they had to face such a trial in the future, they would therefore be better prepared and know what to expect. This could help attendees feel more relaxed if they needed to give evidence in the future.

Two renowned barristers will present for the prosecution and defence on an actual case and delegates can vote on the outcome before hearing the verdict. They will have the opportunity to work out for themselves whether or not the company being prosecuted should be found guilty. The barristers will dissect each other's cases and ask questions of the witnesses and there will also be a question and answer session after this with the barristers and sheriff.

The event is being held at the James Watt Conference Centre, Scottish Enterprise Technology Park in East Kilbride and is being sponsored by Gael.

Contact SOFHT on:
T:01590 671979 | F:01590 671359 | E:admin@sofht.co.uk to book your place now.

Back to top

No matter how careful we may be, mistakes do happen in the work place. From sending complaint emails to the person you are complaining about to forgetting to make an important phone call, it happens in all work places. However, the consequences of this, while significant at the time, are not usually as vital as any errors made in the operating theatre. Mistakes made here can literally prompt life and death situations. Even when not as serious as this, they can cause lasting repercussions.

Combined with this, those in high-pressured jobs can sometimes have a sense of invulnerability from mistakes and a lack of appreciation for teamwork. This sense of invulnerability has been recognised in the aviation industry as far back as three decades ago. Health chiefs are now launching a new initiative that is looking to the way aviation pilots have been trained for the last 20 years to enhance vital communication and teamwork skills in surgeons. It is being introduced in order to reduce the number of mistakes due to human error in the operating theatre. This is important, as the numbers making errors are significant. Over 3/4 of consultants admit to making errors in the operating theatre along with 68% of trainee surgeons and 44% of nurses.

Those of you who attended the Pathology User Group in 2004 may remember Martin Bowman, Gael Ltd’s Sales and Marketing Director, outlining the benefits of introducing techniques borrowed from aviation into a clinical setting in order to reduce the number of errors in the operating theatre. He described how the knowledge gained in training pilots could be transferred to medical staff to help reduce the number of incidents caused by human error as both working circumstances are similar. Now the NHS has itself realised the benefits of this method.

Martin also mentioned how the aviation industry’s “Dirty Dozen” of mistakes apply across the healthcare industry too. Stress, lack of teamwork and poor communication are three of the “Dirty Dozen” of common human errors that lead to mistakes in the aviation industry. The same reasons could be applied across different industry sectors and certainly they are three of the main reasons that the new initiative is looking to combat.

Mistakes are caused by a variety of factors but those that occur due to human error range from technical mistakes, e.g. the way surgeons make an incision, poor handwriting and incomplete records to communication breakdowns, poor decision-making and equipment not being available. The training is specifically designed to assist in non-technical skills such as decision-making, teamwork and leadership. It is based on the accident prevention strategies which pilots have recognised for more than two decades. It could also be expanded to other areas of the NHS, including Accident & Emergency and Intensive Care Units or to any areas where there is a risk of mistakes caused by human error.

Stress is a major factor in many incidences of error. It is believed this training is necessary to help surgeons with their communication and teamwork skills as 20% of surgeons do not think they perform less effectively when under stress and only 40% said they would let team members know if their workload was too much. Stressful situations and too much work can be dealt with in a team environment to help avoid errors.

Important lessons have been learned in aviation pilot training from the information gathered over the last two decades. If this is integrated into the operating theatre environment, it could be a very useful tool as hospitals and aviation organisations have many similarities when it comes to safety as both rely on the avoidance of human error to maintain their safety records.

Back to top

That's it for this edition of thepulse.

The next edition will be with you in September but if you can't wait until then, you can check out our regular news, forums and information on Gael Quality and on compliance issues at our re-designed website at www.gaelquality.com.

thepulse is your newsletter and we want you to tell us what you want – and don't want – to read in it. If you have any suggestions for future articles email us at comments@gaelquality.com.

If you wish to unsubscribe from thepulse, email unsubscribe@gaelquality.com and we will remove you from our mailing list.