Thursday, October 27, 2011

Finding the Best Electricity Provider

There are quite a few electricity providers in the market and more are joining, such as the big supermarket chains. With more electricity providers, you should be able to get a better deal on your electricity. Many will offer deals, but these may be short-term so it is best to do research first in case you end up spending a lot more in the long run.

Internet sites that compare the market for you are often a good place to find the best electricity provider for your household. You will need to enter your postcode and it will tell you which providers are in your area. Be sure to research other electricity companies as not all will be covered by these sites and you could miss out.

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You can also ask neighbours and those in your local area which electricity provider they use and whether they have received a good service or if they have had any problems. Word of mouth is a useful tool.

This way you will know which operators provide electricity in your area and know before you sign up if the service provided will suit your needs.

You can buy your electricity with gas as part of a deal some providers offer, known as dual fuel. If you use gas, this is well worth having a look into because your electricity bill could be a lot cheaper with this combination.

Speak to your electricity provider to find out if they offer gas as well, or indeed other products such as home insurance.

Electricity provision works by signing up to a monthly tariff set by the provider. Bills are now mainly paid monthly by direct debit, although you can still get your electricity bill quarterly and pay by cheque or credit card.

Your tariff will depend on household usage so it is good to speak to a few companies to help you work out your usage.

You can now also buy green electricity, which is better for the environment, but, as you might expect, it costs a bit more.

The electric bill could be about £200 per month more. This may sound a lot but the government has a number of schemes that benefit those who are switching to green energy, so it is still a good idea to look into it.

Another factor to take into consideration when choosing your electricity provider is the customer services they offer, or what is known as after-care.

Any household individual problems with the electrics will need to be sorted as soon as possible, so you should find out if they do call-outs over holiday periods and weekends.

The electricity market is well regulated and there are a couple of companies that you can speak to if you are unsure about your electric bill and whether you are getting a good deal or not. With so many electricity providers in the market, and more entering, it is advisable to be sure your company is reliable and most suitable for you.

Finding the Best Electricity Provider

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Self Image Improvement - Start an Organized Program

Almost everyone could use some self image improvement. Today it seems like it is almost normal for people to have a poor self image of themselves. So how do we go about improving our self image?

Improving yourself image means starting to care for yourself and being proud of your accomplishments. One easy way to do this is to remind yourself of your accomplishments. For many of us we tend to forget the great things we have done in our lives and only remember the bad ones.

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One easy way to do this is to remind yourself each day of three things you have done that you can be proud of. These can be big things or little things, but try to do this first thing everyday while driving to work.

By doing this self image improvement technique regularly you will reach a point where it is almost normal for you to think positively about yourself.

Here is probably the best and easiest self image improvement technique ever. I read this in a book called 'The Magic of Thinking Big.' In it the author points out that if you were lost in a woods people would come looking for you. People would spend millions of dollars and days looking for you until all hope is lost.

Don't believe me?

Look at the news. In the news almost every week you read of search party rescues looking for a lost hiker. Why is everyone so interested in finding this person? Is it because they are an important congressman?

No, the reason they are looking for that person and the reason why hundreds of people you don't even know would come looking for you is because you are human!

Think about that for a moment, and see if you don't have self image improvement!

Self Image Improvement - Start an Organized Program

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3 Burning Issues For Hospitals Today

This recession has had quite an impact on hospitals, causing 45% of hospitals to postpone capital projects and 13% to cease any expansion in process, as an American Hospital Association report revealed. But despite the new challenges posed by financial crisis for the medical industry, hospitals have their own health care delivery issues to tackle.

1. Hospital Deaths due to Medical Errors

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Preventable medical errors caused an average of 195,000 individuals to lose their lives in the USA. This was the finding of a HealthGrades study that assessed 37 million patient records for the years 2000, 2001 and 2002. The associated health care cost of these medical errors is estimated to be over billion per year. Following the study, analysts suggested that just by improving upon four key areas, namely, failure to rescue, bed sores, postoperative sepsis, and postoperative pulmonary embolism. And if their occurrence could be reduced by just 20 percent, 39,000 lives can be saved each year. Whether medical error rates have dropped since the study remains to be seen.

2. Hospitals' Efficiency

The hospitals in the US can significantly improve patient care and also save a minimum of about billion annually, only if they became more efficient. These conclusions follow from an analysis by Thomson Reuters. Key suggestions from the company to save costs include reducing hospital-acquired infections and slashing hospital readmissions. While the minimum savings are to the tune of billion, with some really effective measures in place hospitals could save up to billion over a span of three years. That's about billion a year in savings.

3. Electronic Health Records

The present state of affairs seems pretty dismal as only 1.5 percent of U.S. hospitals have implemented facility-wide comprehensive health care information technology systems. Further, just about 8 - 11 percent hospitals have at least a single unit with installed with basic health care IT systems. (New England Journal of Medicine, Mar 2009).

While smaller budgets, maintenance costs, hesitation among health care professional are said to be the primary reasons preventing the widespread use of IT systems, the long-term effects of installing them need to be taken into account. At the same time, it's hardly any use having IT systems in place when their power isn't leveraged via effective use.

3 Burning Issues For Hospitals Today

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Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Outside Home Improvement Ideas

Home improvement is a popular activity. Many homeowners are avid in making improvements because it not only makes a home more comfortable and nice to live in, but it also increases its value. Projects can be done inside or outside. There are a range of projects that a person can do. Many do not even require any special skills, but just some simple knowledge. Additionally, these projects can be a great way to get the family together, especially outdoors projects. Home improvement does not have to be expensive or time consuming. There are plenty of great outdoor projects you whole family can enjoy doing.

Simple Ideas

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The outside of your home is the first thing people see. It can have a great impact on how people perceive you and your home. That is why many home improvement projects are on the outside of a home. A simple way to instantly improve your home's look is to paint. Even if your home has vinyl siding, there is likely some wooden trim that could benefit from a coat of paint. It is something anyone can do and is a cheap project, too. The results, though, are amazing. It can be surprising how a little paint can make such a large improvement. You should paint any wooden area and be sure to protect things around the area so you do not get paint where it shouldn't be. Another fun project is redoing your backyard. Perhaps it is boring and unproductive. With the addition of a few things, like a picnic table, a hammock or a barbeque pit, you can completely change the look and make it more inviting. Even something as simple as cleaning up can do wonders. Choose projects that you can get done in a day or two. Your whole family can work together on them. You also will not get overwhelmed by these small projects. You will also be able to maintain a reasonable budget, too.

Your outdoor projects do not have to be anything major. You do not have to add a swimming pool and drywall repair, build a new deck or redo the roof, to make good changes and improvements. The basics of outdoor home improvement is to just change things to make it look better. You do not have to go to extremes. You can simple change something here and there. You can plant flowers, add a porch swing or even redo your driveway. Whatever you do, it is going to improve your home without having to undergo a major project.

Outside Home Improvement Ideas

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Lawn Care and Fertilizer Application

The health of your lawn is a reflection of your capability as a responsible homeowner. Ideally, lawns should be lush, green, and weed-free; however, we all know that it takes more than your sprinklers to maintain a your yards green carpet. It does require time and energy which some of us only have so much of. Enter your local lawn care service company. These home improvement service providers take care of your landscape all throughout the year at reasonable prices.

Here are a few tips for lawn care and fertilizer application from the professionals:

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Don't mow grass too short. 3 to 4 is an acceptable length for grass. Longer blades, especially for newly planted sods will lead to stronger roots. It also promotes better absorption of water and plant food. Set your sprinklers early in the morning. Water your lawn right before the sun comes up. For warm areas like Florida, watering sods in the morning is the best way to go because it gives grass enough time to absorb water in preparation for the dry weather. A period of "rest" is good. When the say rest, they mean you leave your lawn untouched for a month. This is most applicable to warmer areas such as New Port Richey and the rest of Florida. The aim is to help your lawn develop its own method of recovery during drought. Come fall, then you may get back to mowing, fertilizing, and regularly watering your sods. Schedule fertilizer application. Do not fertilize in the summer. September or the fall season is the most ideal period for grass fertilizing. Grass are more adapted to feeding on nutrients during this time of the year because they are preparing for the cold season.

FERTILIZING DOS AND DON'TS

For new sods- use starter fertilizers. This plant food is rich in potassium, nitrogen, and phosphorous. Professional lawn care providers will conduct soil tests and analysis to make sure that the fertilizer being applied is compatible with the current state of your soil. Weed killers should not be applied to new grass sods. Anti-weed compounds can actually kill young lawns.

For Fescues, Bluegrasses and Ryegrasses- these are cool climate lawns and their full lushness can only be seen in colder regions. Feed your lawn early in the fall, once or twice. Anything more could be excessive. Applying fertilizers once during mid spring can also help your lawn grow thicker.

For Bermuda and Zoysia- since these grasses dwell in warm climates, fertilizing the early summer to late spring should help them maintain their health. Note that application of plant food should be done lightly to avoid scorching the roots. Overfeeding your grass can lead to dark-colored grass that are just plain unsightly. Fertilizing this variety of grass in the later part of fall will be fatal so avoid this time.

Lawn Care and Fertilizer Application

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How to Remove Advanced System Care Free

Advanced System Care Free offers a one-stop-shop for cleaning and maintaining the PC for better overall system performance.

If you want to remove this software, it provides its own uninstall tool, so if you want to remove it from the PC, the attached uninstall tool should be the first choice.

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The following is the detailed information on how to remove the unwanted software from your computer:

1. Go to the desktop, click Start button;

2. Click All Programs, and move the cursor straight across to the next menu, select the unwanted software then click Uninstall Advanced System Care;

3. Click Yes on the dialog box that asks your permission to remove the unwanted software and the uninstall procedure will begin, then please wait a moment until the whole process finishes;

4. After finishing the uninstall procedure, the uninstall tool will pop up a dialog box which informs you the unwanted program has been successfully removed from your computer then just simply click OK;

5. The last step is to check the left-overs of the unwanted program, please perform the below two steps:

Step 1 - please go back to the desktop, click Start button and All Programs, you will find that the shortcut of System Care 3 has gone, if not, right click it and click Delete;

Step 2 - please go to the desktop, double click My Computer, double click Local Disk (C:) and then double click Program Files. Right click the folder named the unwanted program and click Delete to remove the left-overs.

How to Remove Advanced System Care Free

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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Improvements in Technology With Dentistry

The field of dentistry has come a long way. If we look at how they did the cleaning, whitening, teeth pulling, and so on, we can see a big difference even to what they did ten years ago. The technology that has been introduced to the dental industry has been amazing and we can all benefit from these advancements in some way. They make the processes quicker and easier for the most part for a lot of patients and dentists alike.

Instead of having the large clumsy pieces of equipment that take pictures of the mouth, there are now smaller intra-oral cameras that are used in certain practices instead. The x-ray machines are built differently although only the major dental clinics seem to have the smaller most advanced machines. Better anesthetics are used that don't have the same side effects but are stronger. Whitening procedures have now expanded to include the more impressive laser whitening technology. While it is quite expensive, the results last for quite some time and the teeth are whiter than what other procedures would give. There have also been a number of great advancements with braces as well. They have gone from large and rather aesthetically unappealing contraptions to clear coverings for the teeth that have great affects in shorter amount of time and you can't even see them. Even the retainers have come a long way.

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Advancements are happening all the time and while some of them don't seem to have much advantage except for being smaller, these machines take better pictures, the products give better results and so the list goes. We benefit from these things without taking much thought to it except in some cases for the price. It really is amazing what is happening to the industry so that we have can better looking and healthier teeth and gums.

The Improvements in Technology With Dentistry

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Interviewing Parents Is Essential For Child Care And Daycare Providers

As a child care provider you will spend your day caring for other people's children. This may sound ideal, since you get to send them home to their parents at the end of each day. However, many new providers are so eager to bring in new families that they don't take the time to do proper interviews before signing on new clients. This can lead to a multitude of problems down the road that can be avoided with a sit down interview prior to contract signing and a trial period with each new family.

It may surprise you to find out that many parents searching for care for their children don't request an interview before placing their children in care. There are a few reasons why this may happen. First, in some areas child care services are very scarce and parents are willing to take almost anything that comes along so that they can work and provide for their family. They assume that if other people are bringing their children to the provider for care then the provider must be fine. Secondly, parents are sometimes in a huge hurry to find child care for their children because they are starting a new job or because other child care arrangements are no longer available. So again, they take the first opening they find. Third, parents may know other families that bring their children to that particular facility and are happy there, so they assume that their children will be happy there as well. This is a case of a family choosing a provider based solely on reputation. Throughout my nine years of being a child care provider, I had several instances in which parents called up and were ready to bring their children without ever visiting my home or meeting me! Since this does happen, it is the responsibility of the provider to insist on an interview before agreeing to provide care for a family.

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Why is an interview so important? There are several reasons. First, you don't know this family and they don't know you. The parents may sound wonderful on the phone, but you may meet them and find out that your phone impression was way off base. As the old adage says, first impressions mean a lot. You need to physically SEE these people before you agree to care for their children. Remember, you may spend the majority of your day with their children, but you will have to deal with the parents at least twice a day as well. Also, you absolutely must meet the children before you agree to care for them. Surprisingly, you can often get an accurate read on a child's behavior and temperament in that first interview. Some children may arrive and be shy and quiet, but after a few minutes they will start to interact with other children and you should be able to get a good read on their behavior. It is true that some personalities clash, and you need to make sure that you can get along with the children you care for. One word of caution: even if you do know a family from the community, you still should meet with them formally as a child care provider before agreeing to care for their children. You never know what you may learn about a family in an interview. The second reason that an interview is necessary is to show your facility to the family. You need to make sure that they are ok with the way you have your facility set up before they bring their children to you. Third, you need to conduct an interview to review your contract and other required forms with the family. Your contract is your guide book on how your facility is run. You should sit down and discuss each contract item with the parents and also discuss each other required document so that there are no surprises. Legally, it is extremely important that you fully explain each document to make sure that parents understand what they are signing. Just like any other signed document, your child care contract and supporting paperwork are legally binding documents once they are signed. An interview can help to ensure that this is a good child care match for everyone.

So, how do you conduct an interview? It doesn't have to be anything fancy or formal. I used to think that interviews with new families should be done after daycare hours. If that is the only time it will work, fine. However, I now feel that it is best to have the interviews during the day when you have other children present, whether your own or someone else's. Choose a time of your work day when the children will be occupied and not need too much of your attention. Avoid meal or snack times, craft times, and nap time. You want a time when the new children can play and interact with the other children and you can observe while talking to the parents. I also recommend that you ask both parents to attend the interview if both parents will be involved in drop off and pick up. That way there are no surprises. I usually start the interview with a tour of the facility- the entire facility. That means that even if there are areas of your home that will never be used for child care, you still should show these areas to the parents. You want them to feel comfortable that your entire home is a safe, clean, and nurturing environment for their children. Specifically point out features in the areas used for child care, such as the eating area, the bathroom, nap areas, etc. Once the tour is over, take a few minutes to get the new children started playing with the others and sit down nearby with the parents. Start by going over the contract, since this is what brings out and answers the most questions. Discuss rates, hours of operation, schedules, meals, drop off and pick up, everything! Also review all other forms. Check to see if they have questions. Make sure you ask them about their typical drop off and pick up times so you can make sure they fit with your schedule. Also, be sure to provide the parents with a form to fill out about their child. Include areas for sleep habits, food or other allergies, medications needed, previous daycare experiences, fears, likes and dislikes, anything you need to know about this child to provide the best quality care. I would recommend spending at least 30 minutes talking with the parents while observing the kids playing. If you see behavior issues in this time, discuss them right away. If the parents are ready to sign the documents when you are done talking and you also think this would be a good match, make sure you reiterate that all children are accepted into care on a two (or four) week trial basis. That means that if either party is unhappy with the arrangement in that time they can cancel immediately without penalty. This gives everyone a little breathing room.

Being a child care provider is the ultimate in customer service positions. You spend long hours each day dealing with children and the people who care the most about them, their parents. You need to conduct an initial interview for the sake of everyone involved. Better to be safe than sorry!

Interviewing Parents Is Essential For Child Care And Daycare Providers

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Memory Improvement Techniques - Are You Taking Care of Your Brain?

Are you suffering from memory loss? Or would you just like to have that razor sharp memory from your youth? If so, the good news is that a good memory is well within your reach.

Let's start with arguably the most important factor in overall mental health, and that is taking good care of your brain. While it might sound simplistic, there are specific, proven techniques you can implement today that won't cost you a penny. Let's take a look at the specifics...

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First, it's important to realize your brain is just like any other body part, although much more powerful. Your brain needs nourishment. Just like any attribute of the human body, your brain needs to be taken care of and challenged to reach its peak potential. Think of it as a muscle. If you want a toned, trim body, exercise is crucial. If you want a high functioning memory, brain fitness is equally important.

An immediate solution for memory improvement is not often discussed, probably because it's not a miracle cure or filled with hype and glowing promises. But the truth is, one way to improve memory is to examine your personal habits and change them if necessary.

Examine Your Personal Habits

Are you getting enough sleep? Lack of sleep is a major cause of lowered brain function and hence, memory loss. We can't assign a specific number of hours you need to sleep - only you can determine how much you need.

But it's well worth taking a good hard look at your sleep habits. Are you sleeping a consistent amount of hours? Do you have good sleep habits, like a comfortable bed and retiring at roughly the same time? Be honest with yourself to determine if changes are required..

Further, just as good nutrition plays a key role in physical health, the same is true for brain function and memory. You can improve brain fitness by making sure you're eating a balanced diet. Are you getting all the nutrients you need? What about water consumption, are you drinking enough water? All of the good physical health habits apply to brain health as well.

What Else Can I Do?

We're not big on taking pills, so we're not going to suggest you run out and buy the latest herbal supplement. But a good multi vitamin is useful, especially as we age. They're inexpensive and if you take one consistently, you'll notice a positive difference. You'll have increased energy levels, higher brain capacity, and you'll feel better physically.

Finally, another good way to improve memory is to challenge your brain. Sorry, but watching this seasons newest sitcom doesn't make the grade. With a few notable exceptions, watching Tv is passive and doesn't challenge your brain.

Make your brain work instead of kicking it into passive gear. Here's something to try. Instead of relying on your car's GPS, make a point to study the route beforehand and challenge yourself to remember it. You can always write down the directions just in case.

In today's gadget driven and high tech society, we often over rely on technology instead of using good old fashioned brain power. The end result is less stimulation to the brain, which results in lowered capacity and a decrease in memory skills. The less we're forced to use the brain and our capacity for memory, the less likely it'll be there when we need it.

Think of your brain as being just like your heart. Take care of it, use it, and give it a workout. You might even get praised for having a razor sharp memory!

Memory Improvement Techniques - Are You Taking Care of Your Brain?

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Monday, October 24, 2011

Pajama Pants - How To Care For Silk Pajama Pants

Silk pajama pants and lounge pants are a luxurious addition to your evening routine. However, when it comes time to wash your pants, you want to make sure that you're treating them in a way that will ensure that your garment will last for a long time.

The first thing to do when finding out how to care for your silk clothing is to check for the instructions on the garment tag. Here, the manufacturer will provide you with the best way to care for your garment. However, if there is no tag, or you can no longer read the text or symbols on the label, here are some general guidelines for caring for silk. Please note that above all, you should use your own common sense and consult a professional cleaner if you're unsure. I am not responsible for any issues associated with mishaps while cleaning your silk garments.

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Before washing your silk garments, first perform a spot test with some water and mild soap in an inconspicuous area of the garment. If the color runs or the garment is otherwise affected, take it for professional cleaning and do not wash it at home.

Some silk pajama pants and lounge pants can be washed in a washing machine. However, to keep them looking their best, it's ideal to hand wash these garments instead of throwing them in a washing machine. Hand wash your garment with cool water and a mild soap. Be gentle when washing your garment -- do not wring or let it soak for a long time. Silk is a delicate fabric, so treat it carefully.

Empty the soapy water and rinse your garment in fresh cool water with a bit of white vinegar added to it. Vinegar works to help remove the soap residue from the garment. Empty the water and rinse again with plain cool water. Do not wring out the garment to remove excess water. Instead, roll it in a clean, dry towel.

When drying silk, do not use heat or place in direct sunlight, as this can damage the delicate fibers. If you must machine dry, then use the air-dry setting that uses no heat. The preferable method is to hang the garment to dry in a location that will not receive direct sunlight.

If you need to iron your garment, do so while it is still damp, on the wrong side of the fabric. Use the lowest setting on your iron -- most irons have a "silk" setting.

Pajama Pants - How To Care For Silk Pajama Pants

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Quality Lab Coats Guide

As healthcare costs increase, Physicians are often required to provide their own personal lab coats. In lieu of purchasing a flimsy, uncomfortable and poorly fitted lab coat, healthcare providers now have their eye on high quality, flattering, and stain resistant lab coats made with 100% cotton. Most health care providers want a lab coat that won't wear out and lose its shape over time. They also want a coat that reflects their level of education, achievement, and (deserved) status. There are a variety of medical apparel companies who service discerning clinicians.

How can you tell if you are buying a quality lab coat?

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Quality starts with the selected fabric. Higher quality lab coats are made with 100% cotton, allowing the wearer to work comfortably in stressful environments. Better lab coats are made with a high denier fabric, which allows the garment greater durability and helps to maintain its shape when loaded with various medical instruments. You may also find subtle texture and pattern in today's lab coats - which contributes to improved appearance and durability. In addition, these higher quality fabrics offer a soft hand and crisp finish - increasing comfort and visual appeal. 

Sewing is another important factor in identifying a quality lab coat. Today's lab coats have reinforced seams, bar tacks at stress points and a triangulated stitch on all pocket corners - ensuring that they live up to the punishment of the busy, modern heath care practice or hospital setting.

One should also look for stain resistance in a high quality lab coat. Fabrics treated with DuPont Dual Action Teflon Fabric Protector resist soil and stains, and are emerging as an industry standard. This performance fabric treatment helps to keep high quality lab coats looking cleaner, brighter and whiter - longer. 

Comfort and functionality also play a role in determining if you are purchasing a higher quality lab coat. The lab coat should give the wearer a full range of motion and allow any task to be performed effortlessly. Quality lab coats offer large front pockets for essentials and some offer a hidden inside pocket for a cell phone or PDA. 

Style also plays an essential role. When it comes to design, modern lab coats are influenced more by fine, tailored clothing, rather than the industrial uniforms of the past. Today, one can wear a lab coat that appears very professional and stylish, while still maintaining the traditional appearance of the medical "white lab coat."

Most quality lab coats manufactures can be found online and offer no hassle return policies. If you haven't purchased a new lab coat lately - today's quality lab coats offer a significant improvement to the traditional lab coats of the past.

Quality Lab Coats Guide

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Affordable Medical Transcription Services For Hospitals

Medical transcription is one of the highly acclaimed jobs in the business outsourcing sector and is aimed at reducing the workload of staffs in various health care facilities, including hospitals in developed countries. Most medical transcription firms offer their services in a highly professional and affordable manner suited to the changing requirements of their clients. The entire procedure aims at easing the day-to-day processing of patient records and insurance claims so that health care firms can concentrate more on improving their key services. These affordable medical transcription services are now proving to be highly beneficial for hospitals, outpatient clinics, rehabilitation facilities, long term care facilities and more.

Now with the increasing requirement of hospitals to substantially reduce their operating costs, most medical transcription firms are offering their services at highly affordable rates and also in a reliable and efficient manner. With most of these offshore facilities working in accordance with the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) regulations, all electronic transactions involving sensitive patient records remain secure.

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With offshore medical transcription centers having all the necessary infrastructure including dictation equipments, dedicated servers and high-end computers with uninterrupted high speed internet, everything required for immediate patient record processing is being done in a time-bound manner. The availability of qualified graduates, well versed in the English language, in offshore facilities is also proving beneficial.

With leading hospitals requesting for more services, all leading medical transcription providers are continuously expanding their services with more employees and equipments. To have patient records processed with high accuracy, almost all medical transcription service providers have employed highly skilled and experienced proofreaders and trainers. With the help of these support staffs, almost all processed records maintain high accuracy levels up to 99%. These firms often update the knowledge level of employees so that they stay informed about the latest technologies and developments in the medical field. These outsourcing firms also have their in-house doctors and language experts whose services are always available for employees.

To help hospitals further in their daily health care job requirements, most medical transcription outsourcing firms also undertake a number of related services such as medical coding and medical billing. Thus with minimum turnaround time in medical records documentation and much reduced costs involved, having these medical transcription services outsourced will enable health care facilities including hospitals to stay competitive and profitable in their business.

Affordable Medical Transcription Services For Hospitals

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Cleaning Headstones

Over a period headstones and memorials can get dirty, one of the most common causes being hard water, which leaves a lime scale deposit. This is especially visible on polish granite. But by cleaning the headstone or memorials on a regular basis will not only prolong the life of the stone but also ensure the stone is in good condition. A dirty one may look dull or faded, and by following a specific process you can renew the shine.

The first stage before you start cleaning is to determine what the headstone is made of, the most common being granite, limestone, marble or bronze. Each material will require a different cleaning process and cleaning liquid or agent.

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Limestone, Sandstone and Marble Headstones

These headstones are made of soft stone; therefore you will need to be gentle when cleaning. Use water with non-ionic soaps or detergents applied with a natural bristled brush. Do not use a wire brush, acid cleaners or household cleaners as this may cause permanent damage.

Granite Headstones

Follow the guidelines as above when cleaning granite headstones. Due to granite's durability, it is all right to use a more aggressive scrubbing. On polished granite calcium build-up from hard water can cause a dull faded appearance. To remove this use a heavy duty non metallic scouring pad, check before using it is suitable for granite.

Bronze Headstones

As most Bronze ones usually consist of a bronze plaque which is mounted to a base usually made of granite or concrete and lay flat at lawn level. Therefore you may need to apply one of the above techniques to clean the stone surround plus also cleaning the bronze.

As bronze is furnished with a factory applied lacquer coating to seal and preserve the original appearance, maintenance is important as over a period of time this finish will eventually deteriorate. Proper care will preserve the finish and prevent the need for restoration.

Cleaning Headstones

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Sunday, October 23, 2011

The Washing Guide Secrets For Hand Washing Clothes

The care labels for some clothes specify that they should be washed by hand. But if you occasionally hand wash the clothes that you normally wash in the machine, you will help to prolong their life.

Tips for Best Results

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Just as with machine-washing, the first thing to do is sort your clothes by colour so that you are washing whites, light colours and dark colours separately.

Check the care label to see whether your clothes require washing in cold or hand-hot water, and whether there are instructions about laundry detergent type (eg for delicate fabrics).

Make sure you add the right amount of laundry detergent. Check our dosing information. Make sure the washing detergent has completely dissolved in the water before immersing items in the wash solution.

Add your clothes to the water and, if they are heavily stained, leave them to soak.

After washing the clothes by gently squeezing the garments through the wash solution, rinse three or more times, until the water runs clear.

Try to avoid keeping your hands in the laundry detergent for too long. Wash and dry them immediately afterwards. People with sensitive or damaged skin should be especially careful to do this, and may wish to use rubber gloves.

Hand washing Particular Fabrics

Delicates

It is recommended that you use a pH neutral non-enzymated laundry detergent because they do not contain enzymes, bleach or brightening agents.

Modern Fabrics

Many modern fabrics can also be hand washed in a powder or liquid detergent, but check the care label carefully for instructions.

Woollens

Check that the care label on the article advises washing - some woollens are labelled 'dry clean only'.

Use warm water (around 30 - 40°C).

Use a pH neutral non-enzymated laundry detergent.

Wash quickly, squeezing the garment gently in the suds. Give extra-dirty woollens two washes with a rinse between, rather than one long wash.

Add a fabric conditioner in the final rinse water, to ensure that the garment stays soft.

Gently squeeze out the excess moisture, then roll in a towel or spin dry in your machine to remove as much water as possible to prevent possible dye migration. Dry flat on a towel away from direct heat and sunlight to prevent white or light colours from discoluring. Do not tumble dry.

The Washing Guide Secrets For Hand Washing Clothes

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What is an Electronic Medical Record (EMR)?

An electronic medical record(EMR), also known as an electronic health record(EHR) or Computerized Patient Record (CPR) is a patient's medical information in an electronic format. This medical information is accessible via computers on a network, to provide health care and health-related services.

EHRs contain information regarding the past, present, or future physical and mental health of a patient, medical test reports, medical images, financial and demographic information. In addition, the ordering of medical tests, medications, treatments, and clinical guidelines are accessible within the EHR. The data contained in HER can be captured or transmitted securely and in real-time by users at the point of care. The three core functions of an Electronic Medical Record (EMR) are the following:

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EMR systems capture patient data

EMR systems are designed to capture data at the point of care using databases, rules engines, and knowledge bases. The information is then culled and submitted to the system via a computer workstation, tablet pc, mobile device or voice recognition system.

EMR software integrates with other data sources

The EMR must be capable of integrating with systems including financial, administrative, and clinical departments, as seen with many practice management systems. This allows more streamlined workflow reducing time spent entering data across multiple systems. It also ensures quality data across the systems. An example would include integration between a hospital, billing, laboratory, imaging, pharmacy, and practice management systems. A standard has been put in place call the HL7 (Health Level 7) which is a common language for sending and receiving messages from different information systems. The most common use is between a practice management and EMR system or between physician offices and a hospital.

EMR assists provider decision making

Rules engines can provide alerts, reminders, clinical protocols, and coding assistance at the point of care in EMR systems. EMRs can provide real-time data to a provider allowing providers to analyze and report data quickly. The data can also be compiled to include clinical statistics analysis, population health, patient/drug reports, and demographics reports.

What is an Electronic Medical Record (EMR)?

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Self-Improvement - God's Approval

Man's approval means nothing unless you already have God's approval which means eternal life. Many times the temptation in life is to please people at the expense of pleasing God. George Washington said, "If, to please the people, we offer what we ourselves disapprove, how can we afterward defend our work? Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair."

We need to raise the standard by lifting our eyes to Jesus. By asking the question, "What would Jesus want me to do?" or "What would Jesus do in this situation?" By so doing, we will more closely live the life God wants us to live. By pleasing God, we won't always please our fellow man. But what is more important: pleasing the Creator of the universe who holds your life in His hands or some imperfect human being walking on God's earth?

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Let me remind us though, that we don't gain God's full approval by doing the right things. Doing all the right things won't get us to Heaven. We can't earn our way to Heaven. Heaven is a gift. A gift we can receive only through the blood of Jesus Christ. God loves us so much that He sent His own Son Jesus to earth to die on a cross for our sins. Jesus took upon Himself on that tree all the terrible things you and I have done, said, or thought. Because of Jesus, we have God's full approval. Have you given your life to Jesus Christ? That is the only way you and I can please God.

Self-Improvement - God's Approval

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Saturday, October 22, 2011

The Role and Responsibilities of Nurse Managers

Managing a staff of nurses is a challenging career that requires nursing and managerial skills. A nursing management career starts with being a licensed practical nurse and working your way up through years of clinical practice and advanced education. They also participate in management training that addresses specific issues that deals with employees, behavioral standards, and handling of legal issues that is associated with the supervision of the people working in the hospital environment. Nurse Managers or what used to be called as head nurses handle specific departments such as the intensive care unit or pediatrics.

Duties of a nurse manager

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Nurse Managers are responsible for planning, organizing, and directing health services in their department to ensure that the goals and objectives are performed consistently and that the services provided to the patients is of the highest quality and standard. They select, mentor, motivate, and direct the development and evaluation of the staff nurses. They are responsible for establishing and keeping track of quality improvement indicators and other information that concerns the patient care and services. They ensure that resources are available in order to provide high quality service and the on-time performance that is consistent with the facility's standards. At times, they devise educational programs that are health related for the facility's non-professional and professional staff. They participate, consult and collaborate with other units and healthcare providers in developing long term plans for health care programs. They interpret and communicate policies and procedures that the agency or facility puts in place to establish areas of responsibility and assignments among departments and staff. They are also responsible for developing budget estimates and handle other information pertaining to financial concerns and requirements. They approve and monitor expenditures and purchases to ensure that the budget guidelines are complied to. They are responsible in the staff maintenance. They assign nurses to particular cases and oversee the patient care to ensure that it remains at a high standard. They are also involved in creating treatment plans for patients and to coordinate the efforts of the medical team. This is to keep everyone up to date of the progress in the medical care and condition of the patient.

Key challenges in nursing management

Increasing nursing staff satisfaction and retention. One of the most challenging aspects of being a nurse manager is how to effectively address or reduce the effects of the continuing shortage of nurses especially in their respective facility or department. Planning and managing the unit's finances and resources. This requires proper planning and management on a shift to shift basis and in between shifts. Handling of labor and union issues. Labor unions are becoming more demanding in their efforts to affect the hospital's management decisions. Nurse Managers need to have the sophistication, skill and diplomacy in order to effectively address such concerns and issues. Creating a positive and performance oriented culture. A nurse manager has a great influence in establishing a positive and performance oriented culture by building an open communication with the staff and establish the standards of care, build an alliance with her staff and other members of the multi-disciplinary team and assure that each one feels valued and committed to organizational goals.

The Role and Responsibilities of Nurse Managers

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The Physician Portal Is A Key Component Of Electronic Medical Records

Currently, most doctor offices and hospitals record and store medical records in paper format. Though this process may be easy, it requires a lot of storage space, makes sharing of information cumbersome, and leaves much room for error due to misinterpretation of illegible information. The U.S. government is encouraging the transition to electronic medical records, or EMRs, containing information captured and update via a physician portal.

The anticipated switch to EMRs involves 70 percent of hospitals and 90 percent of physicians within the next ten years. Based on the figures of those currently utilizing EMRs, this represents an 800 percent increase for hospitals and 400 percent increase for physicians. As a result, major training and information technology movements are now occurring to streamline the transition process.

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Key to the creation and updating of EMRs is the physician portal, the way the healthcare provider accesses patient records to perform these tasks. Existence of this portal enables a treating physician to review and update EMRs at point of treatment or offsite. Devices like tablet computers, PCs, and laptops can be used to access the portal and view information in real-time.

CPOE, or computerized physician order entry, is also accomplished via this portal. This allows the medical provider to electronically enter treatment instructions for patients under his or her care. Through EMR integration, hospitals, radiology providers, laboratories, and pharmacies involved in treatment can view this information. This allows them to collaborate regarding treatment, ensuring that there is no duplication or contradiction.

Without the physician portal and EMR integration, electronic health information exchange between these parties would be impossible. The portal serves as the starting point for entry and updating of patient healthcare information. It forms the foundation upon which the other treatment providers can build, contributing relevant details in real-time for all involved to view.

The Physician Portal Is A Key Component Of Electronic Medical Records

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Emergency Room Care at Home

Hospital emergency departments (EDs) were initially designed to provide immediate care for patients experiencing acute medical conditions and serious trauma victims. Once patients were stabilized they were either discharged home or transferred to another location for more advanced and specialized care. Now, EDs are experiencing increased use by people who do not have a primary care provider and use the ED for routine medical care. The increased inappropriate usage of the ED places an increased stress on already strained healthcare resources.

EDs have responded to the increased usage for non-emergent services by offering many more resources than the original emergency room. Now the ED has more diagnostic and treatment options than were previously intended. The ED now is a self-sufficient unit within the larger medical center, and has become integrated into the patients' continuum of care. In-house specialty consultations are usually immediately available as are advanced diagnostic studies. This has perhaps led to a perpetuation of the misuse of the modern day emergency department.

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An increasing problem is the misuse of emergency services by patients who do not have a primary care provider and use the ED for routine and non-urgent care. Less than 10% of emergency room visits are actually emergencies. More than half of the patients that present to the ED could be better served by being treated in place (home, skilled nursing facility, occupational health office, or added on to a PCP schedule). One-third of ED visits could be treated in a Primary Care Provider office. It has been well established treatment in Emergency Departments is more expensive than in any of the above mentioned potential care settings.

Despite the high cost of ED services non-emergent use of emergency services continues to grow. Many non-urgent ED visits could have been avoided if patients had a pre-existing relationship with an accessible primary care provider. In addition to the financial cost, crowded waiting areas, long wait times, actual and potential delays in receiving medical care patients are subjected to increased risk for medical errors, exacerbation of pre-existing conditions, and nosocomial infections. ERs will be swamped in the middle of the flu season with a combination of patient types some with actual flu or swine flu while others have minor sprains. Now the person with the sprain has been exposed to the highly contagious flu.

The medical house call has started to make resurgence in many parts of the country to help address many of the primary preventative non-urgent care needs of patients. The average ED visit in NYC can cost upwards of 0 and brings with it the risks of medical errors due to many different health care providers, loss of work and wages due to prolonged wait times, and infectious disease risk due to the gathering of people with airborne illness (Influenza, H1N1, staph and strep infections).

The average cost of a medical house call in NYC ranges from 0- 0 and greatly reduces the risk of nosocomial infections, saves time and reduces lost wages because the patient is able to wait in the comfort of their own home. Often times being able to see the patients normal environment can provide many clues for diagnosing a condition at a fraction of the cost of the ER visit. One hospital in Connecticut has even gone to posting wait times on line for their ERs so patients can log on and see how long it will take to be seen. As much as policymakers say they would like to reign in cost of health care clearly some have decided if you can't fix the problem you may as well feature the problem.

The modern day medical house call can now offer many of the same services that were once only available in the emergency room. In the modern day medical house call patients can have comprehensive physical exams that include blood work, EKGs, x-rays, and ultrasounds (cardiac echo, carotid Doppler studies etc). These tests are often sufficient to provide the needed data to make a diagnosis and establish a treatment plan. Another benefit of the medical house call is the clinicians that are seeing you are able to give you their undivided attention. Also you will be able to see the same health care provider as opposed to the doctor of the day or medical resident. Another advantage of the medical house call is the increased privacy that you are afforded by the nature of staying in your home. If patient use the medical house call for their primary care needs as well as their sick day needs they may be able to spare themselves the stress and risks of a trip to the emergency room.

Some common conditions that can be treated in the home include common pulmonary infections (pneumonia & bronchitis), gastrointestinal conditions (stomach flu & abdominal pain), dermatological conditions (2nd degree burns, acne, rashes), chronic conditions (diabetes, COPD, hypothyroid, obesity, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure), urological problems (urinary tract infections, prostate inflammation, kidney stones), and dehydration. One preventative care measure that can be done in the home that is not typically done in an ER or even a traditional doctor's office is health behavior counseling for lifestyle modifications. Typically this is done in doctor's offices and Emergency rooms by giving you a generic handout. The reason for this is because the traditional care environment is focused doing the least amount of care possible to meet the needs of the masses that are waiting to be seen.

Emergency rooms were initially designed to treat acute medical conditions and to stabilize trauma patients before they are transfer to the appropriate treatment location. Unfortunately, EDs have also become a place to seek treatment for many people who do not have a primary care provider. As a result, the numbers of emergency visits has increased, although the reasons for the visits are often not emergencies. Non-emergent visits are causing a huge backlog of real emergency patients and increasing the amount of money spent on healthcare.

A new medical house calls company in NYC has recently opened which allows patients to communicate with their PCP online via a secure patient portal. Patients can request appointments online. The Nurse Practitioner arrives at the patient's home, office or hotel usually the same or next day. The NP can diagnose the problem, order tests (most of which can be done at the patients home) and electronically submit a prescription to the local pharmacy that can typically deliver the medication. The company also offers established patients the convenience of web-cam follow-up appointments and email consultations, which allows patients to take their primary care provider with them when they travel. All of this costs a fraction of what the starting price of an ER visit would be. Patients can use their flex spending and health savings accounts or major credit card to pay for this service. As the debate over health care continues more and more innovative and market solutions will answer the call to solve the nations health crisis. The problem will be if policy is made to stifle innovation.

Emergency Room Care at Home

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Friday, October 21, 2011

Granite Countertops Care- 2 Important Things To Know

Granite countertops are popular with home owners and interior designers, not only because of their intrinsic beauty and style, but more so because of their resistance to damage and their enduring quality. But despite their natural strength, proper granite countertops care has to be practiced to ensure their long life and dependability.

There are two essential aspects you must know with regard to proper granite countertops care. These are the short-term and long-term granite countertops care.

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When we say short-term granite countertops care, this is just the daily wiping and cleaning of your countertops. Most people would assume that plain wiping with a cloth and cleaner would do. Well, this is actually true. You don't need to have special skills or expensive products to go about the daily cleaning of your granite countertops. You don't even need to wipe very hard. Light wiping or dusting is sufficient granite countertops care.

However, you must be careful about the kind of cleaner you use. Granite countertops are coated with a sealant that protects the stone from stains and discoloration. Most cleaners are too acidic and may cause damage to the sealant. This will allow chemicals to seep in through the pores of the granite, and this, in turn, causes the discoloration. Many non-acidic cleaners are available in the supermarket, and you should use one of these for your daily cleaning.

The second part of granite countertops care involves long-term effects, and is only done about twice a year. We are talking about reapplying the sealant of your countertop. Even if you are careful in wiping your granite tiles, the sealant still wears off after long periods, and you will need to apply a new coat to maintain the quality of your countertop.

To find out where to buy a good granite countertop sealant, the best place to ask is at your countertop dealer. They will be able to recommend excellent products to you. If you want to use something cheaper, you can also apply a coat of regular car wax. This is an effective sealant for your granite countertops, and in most cases, costs a lot less than special granite sealants as well.

Applying the sealant does not take too much time or effort. You can do this yourself in just a short amount of time. It's just as simple as applying wax on your car.

Now you know the two important things about granite countertops care. Just make sure you do them well, and we guarantee you that your granite countertops will last you a lifetime.

Granite Countertops Care- 2 Important Things To Know

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Clinical Documentation Improvement Program - Using Ready Templates

With the use of technology in all the field of health care, a clinical documentation improvement program too is not an exception. With the introduction of the Electronic Health Reports and the Electronic Medical Reports in the process of documentation, the total process has been simplified and systemized and thus has proved to be a boon. The ready templates that comes with the Electronic Health Reports and the Electronic Medical Reports not only saves up the time of the doctors and the nurses, but at the same time provides them with more cleaner and legible reports which are accurate and concise thereby making it easy for the health care professionals to decide the next course of action.

The ready templates that are used in the EHR or the EMR help in saving the physicians' time and thus they can concentrate more on the areas they should. The main purpose of the clinical documentation improvement program is communication and thus when you are using the ready templates, the options and check boxes are already provided to you - all you have to do is to check on the correct boxes. The ready templates have definitely made the work of the health care professionals and the physician easy and are thus enabling them to spend more time on giving quality care.

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The use of the ready templates and the electronic record keeping system has made the system more systematic and most importantly error free. All the data collected in the clinical documentation improvement program and processed are accurate and purely dependable thus helping in correct diagnosis and thus effective treatment. As it has been seen that the electronic gadgets reduce the medical errors and helps better communication and thus enhances the quality of treatment. The documentation also plays an important part in billing and the legal requirements.

But there is a mixed view among the health care providers and the physicians who often complain that the modern method of electronic clinical documentation improvement program poses a problem as they are often not being able to assess the exact health condition of the patient within the options and the check boxes provided and thus leads them to do a more general record keeping which may prove dangerous in the long run as the course of treatment depends on these records. It may prove to be a disaster is wrong treatment is done based on these data. Though most of the physicians agree that the records are very systematic, concise and legible, but the vital flaw must not be overlooked.

The electronic ready templates for the clinical documentation improvement program should provide more options and should not be so close ended and in many cases it has been found out that the doctors often copy paste the details that is definitely not an ethical practice. The template needs to be more streamlined and at the same time varied to be more useful than the paper documentations.

Clinical Documentation Improvement Program - Using Ready Templates

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The 80-20 Rule in Medicine

I had a "liberal" education before going into medicine, which at the time meant absolutely no courses at all in business or management. In Medical School the presumption was we were all going to be like our professors and stay in academics, so worrying about money was beneath us ( an attitude which explains much of what goes on in medicine). Medical school used to teach us that we did everything we could for THE patient, not so much for the population as a whole. Cost was barely mentioned, and careers were made by developing small improvements in a treatment or procedure.

It was only much later that I learned how business people see things. One of the first things I learned is the 80/20 rule, which says that 20% of the people in any organization do 80% of the work, or 20% of your customers result in 80% of the profits. Like most such rules, it is surprisingly useful across broad areas.

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If you consider populations as a whole, instead of individual patients, the 80/20 rule also applies to medicine. That is, 80% of the overall improvement of the population comes from about 20% of the healthcare expenditures. Simple, cheap, and population based interventions, like vaccinations, treatment of high blood pressure, antibiotics for infections, and well baby care make vast improvements in population health statistics. Almost all of this care can be given by General Practice doctors, cheaply, conveniently and with little or no risk.

The other 80% of the healthcare is the problem. For example up to 50% of medicare expenditures are used during the last year of a person's life. This expenditure, for last line chemotherapy, dialysis, intensive care units, and other expensive procedures might save some individuals, but on average does not help the patient or the health of the population in general.

Almost all the expensive care in the last year of life is given by specialists.

Dr. Berwick is one of the thought leaders in viewing medicine from this population perspective. This type of thinking is the intellectual driving force behind Obamacare.

For the specialist, trying (for example) to place a coil in a 3mm aneurysm in a tiny vessel in the brain, such thinking might as well be from Mars.

More to come.

The 80-20 Rule in Medicine

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Thursday, October 20, 2011

The Improvement of British Dental Hygiene

Teeth care is something that British people aren't exactly known for but in recent times it has begun to improve. Taking the lead from the Americans we have begun to adopt some of their dental hygiene techniques like teeth whitening as well as implementing practise branded dental plans.

The teeth of the British people have never really been that bad, we have just always been more interested in the health of our teeth rather than the cosmetic look of them. That said a lot of my friends have fillings and for those of the older generation this seems to be more so. Some when during the 70's or maybe as late as the 80's attitudes to teeth changed as more and more children who had gaps in their teeth or large overbites were fitted with braces.

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Having had a slight overbite when I was younger I was taken to the orthodontist and measured up for some fitted braces or 'train tracks' as they were known in the playground. The process wasn't that traumatic, I had to have a mould of my teeth made up and then had the brace fitted which took a while as I was having the different parts cemented onto my teeth. Then after this the wires were fitted and tightened. This was probably the worst part of the process as I was left with a constant pulling feeling on my teeth, which left a dull ache for the first couple of days. This initial pain calmed down after a day or so and then I just had to learn to cope with my braces with regards to eating and drinking.

My teeth are now fine and I'm glad I had braces for that year or so as I can imagine they could have caused a few problems throughout my later life. Now a days the British people have developed their dental hygiene. Teeth whitening has become the latest craze with everything from whitening strips to laser whitening being used at the dentist and at home. Another development is the use of dental plans by dentist practises. These allow practises to have their own branded dental plans that allow private dentists to offer their services to what would traditionally be NHS patients at an affordable rate.

The Improvement of British Dental Hygiene

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Good Quality Improvement Programs Produce Better Bottom Lines

W. Edwards Deming once said, "In God we trust, all others bring data!" That is just what I propose to do in this newsletter. I often speak of how continuous quality improvement programs improve the bottom line at a healthcare site. This idea is throughout my web site. I promote the idea that "Quality pays, it does not cost." That is, a good quality improvement program based upon population level data not only is not cost neutral, it improves the income and profit at a site. Many healthcare professionals do not believe this. They point at all the regulatory standards for quality, such as those written by JHACO, and believe that quality is actually costing them quite a bit. I have done some extensive research on this topic recently and believe that I can prove this point convincingly to you.

Fortunately there is good documentation of financial outcomes at healthcare sites which use various quality improvement approaches. I am very familiar with two of these-TransforMed's National Demonstration Project and the Federal Government's NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) Baldrige Award program. Starting in 2006 TransforMed, a subsidiary of American Academy of Family Physicians, began a program to aid in transforming a sample of primary care practices into models of the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH). One group of sites was actively involved with representatives from TransfoMed to adopt the Patient-Centered model and the other group used materials supplied to them by TransforMed to use in a self-directed approach to adopt the model. TransforMed's CEO, Dr. Terry McGeeney, wrote an article recently (available on the TransforMed website) summarizing the financial impact of the adoption of the PCMH. The results were very positive. The revenue for the assisted sites rose 10.49% on average and the rise in revenue for the self-directed sites was 2.43%. For physicians at these sites personal income rose nearly 14% at the assisted sites and 13% at the self-directed sites. This was achieved while most of these practices were installing electronic medical records. These results are well documented because of TransforMed's practice change model incorporates strict tracking of financial data.

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I am familiar with one such site here in West Michigan that has seen its bottom line swing from the red to the black because of its involvement with the TransforMed national project.

The Baldrige Award is given out each year to competitors in manufacturing, small business, education, healthcare and nonprofits. Those competing for the award must document continual quality improvement in a variety of categories. For healthcare providers there must be demonstrated improvement and achievement in healthcare outcome, patient and other customer-focused outcome, financial and market outcomes, workforce-focused outcomes, process effectiveness outcomes and leadership outcomes. In 2002 SSM Healthcare in St. Louis, the first healthcare recipient of the Baldrige Award, noted that it was able to maintain a AA credit rating over 4 years as it worked on the goals of the Baldrige Award. It increased its market share in St. Louis from 13% to 18% while three of its competitors lost ground. It has also been able to maintain its goal of contributing at least 25% of its operating revenue to charity care at its site. This is very impressive, given today's marketplace challenges.

Another healthcare recipient, Mercy Health System of Janesville, Wisconsin, maintained its AA bond rating since 1989, all the while growing from a stand-alone hospital to a fully integrated system with three hospitals and 64 outpatient service facilities. In 2007 Mercy Health Systems was given a rating of positive long term outlook by Moody's rating service.

This summer Modern Healthcare released a report prepared by Thomas Reuters Center for Healthcare Improvement focusing on the CMS's Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey of patient satisfaction. The intent was to see if the 'happiness' as measured on the survey improved the bottom line. The report stated that there was not a strong direct correlation between the two measurements but that the hospitals with the best scores on the survey did generally have significantly better bottom lines than those who did not. Those with significantly better satisfaction scores did achieve significant results in core metrics other than financial. For instance, most reduced significantly patient-waiting times for discharge. Patients don't like to wait for discharge and tend to be more dissatisfied when they do. When discharge time is minimal, then the cycle time for bed use is reduced and income per bed increases, thus improving the bottom line. Another measure of patient satisfaction relates to personal care. Hospitals with higher nurse to bed ratios show generally improved patent care and attention. According to J.D. Powers those with higher ratios also have a better bottom line. Those with an average of 1.19 nurses per patient bed had an average operating margin of 0.64%. Those with a ratio of 0.91 nurses had a negative 0.27% operating margin.

These three examples provide ample illustration, I believe, that good continuous quality improvement programs improve the bottom line. Those who use professional assistance in their improvement efforts earn a better bottom line improvement, as illustrated in the TransforMed example. The American Society of Quality at its website has several good samples of better bottom lines with quality improvement efforts; there is usually at least one article each month in its flagship publication Quality Progress which details an improvement effort at a healthcare site. My illustrations along with a variety of other resources available online prove that "Quality pays, it does not cost."

Good Quality Improvement Programs Produce Better Bottom Lines

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6 Easy Steps to Create a Personal Health Record

The first thing that you should do is collect all your health records from your different healthcare providers. This includes your general practitioners, eye doctor, dentist, and any other specialist you go to.

Here are a few easy steps for you to create your own PHR:

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1.) Contact your doctors office and medical records staff at each location that you receive care. Request copies of your electronic medical record and ask the medical records staff or physician which parts of the record you need. Call the customer service department if you want the medical records kept by your health plan.

2.) Complete the "authorization for release of information" form from the medical facility. This will allow you to gain access to the records. Remember, it may take up to 60 days to receive your medical records so plan ahead.

3.) Choose which method to store your information. You have a choice on which platform to store your medical information. You can store in a physical paper file, electronically via the internet, or digitally via a CD that you can carry with you. The are PHR tools available online that you can use. Some are free and others require a subscription fee to use.

4.) Store the information. Depending on the method you use, you can store the information in a physical disk or paper file. Type or write the information into the completed PHR.

5.) Keep adding and updating the PHR with each successive visit to a healthcare facility.

6.) Keep your information safe and protected. Let your trusted family members know that it exists but beyond that keep it safe.

6 Easy Steps to Create a Personal Health Record

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Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Our Health Care System - What Went Wrong? How to Stay Out of it and Survive

The Wellness Industry, as it has been named, has been with us in some form, quite possible, from caveman times. People have throughout history been aware of the curative, and deadly, effects of plants and animals, and many stories, such as old wives tales, have advice on how to maintain, or regain your health. Children were given castor oil as it was believed they needed to be kept regular. Blood letting was used to heal. The Chinese boiled up dried plants and animal parts to cure, or to boost sexual prowess.

The Medical profession, drug therapy and trusting your doctor to make the right diagnosis have for a long time been held up as the official, safe, provider of health care. Therapies that have been considered as alternative are becoming more and more accepted to both the general public and the Medical profession. These therapies include chiropractic, homeopathic, conductive education and many others.

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The Wellness Industry and the Health-Care Industry (sometimes described as the Sickness Industry) are now both trillion dollar industries. In one way they appear to be opposites, with the Wellness supporters aiming to stay healthy and the Health-Care supporters managing symptoms and disease processes as they occur. In reality it is not so clear cut. Doctors are giving green prescriptions to encourage people to exercise, stem cell therapy is being developed in an attempt to cure certain injuries and diseases, and plastic surgeons carry out surgery on people to improve their appearance when they have no underlying health issues. To some people, the Wellness Industry may appear to be simply expensive vitamins, but a number of companies are developing complex, technologically advanced products that have met needs such as drug free pain reduction and relief. More information is available to the public on health management with supplements such as omega-3 rich fish oils, and why we need it.

The Wellness and the Health-Care Industries have evolved from our desire for health and our need for management or support when our health is challenged in some way. How each of us measures wellness is very subjective, with some people being prepared to undergo tens of thousands of dollars on procedures to improve our appearance when in otherwise good health; while others rarely see a doctor and accept all aches and pains as being part of the aging process.

How each of us manages our health is also very subjective. Some of us grow our own organic vegetables, watch our diet, and take carefully chosen supplements. Others live for the moment, feasting on takeaways, have a high alcohol intake and smoke in spite of all the health warnings. Governments are challenged by the cost of health care, and it is always an important item on the election agenda. A recent report on health funding showed that USA has the second highest spending as a percentage of GDP, but the quality of that spending is very poor. Governments are struggling to provide adequate health care.

What part do we play in this problem and its solution? Responsibility for our health by avoiding smoking, high alcohol intake and drug use; and exercise and a healthy diet fall clearly on our shoulders. Simply expecting the medical profession, drug therapy and insurance companies to fix us places a massive burden on the Health-Care Industry. Chronic disease is rarely fixable, it can usually only be controlled and relieved.

Our body is designed to heal itself, and when properly fuelled and cared for it is able to do this. The Health-Care Industry plays an important role by being available to us assist when we become unwell. So what is the matter with the Health-Care Industry? The problem is both our attitude and our expectation of the Health-Care Industry. This industry is the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff and it is vital to our survival. If we damage our bodies through neglect, and abuse such as smoking and alcohol, we will end up asking for help from the Health-Care Industry. It is our responsibility to care of our bodies and the Wellness Industry can play a huge part in helping us to achieve that. It can be as simple as buying some vitamin C to get rid of a cold, to using holistic treatments under the care of a consultant to gain control over chronic health problems.

All of us, at some point in our lives will need to ask for assistance from the Health-Care Industry. At the same time, we should always be mindful of living a healthy lifestyle. It needs to become a habit, and second nature. By focusing on maintaining health, and asking for assistance from the Wellness Industry when necessary you will get the best of good health for as long as possible. Your body will thank and reward you for it..

Our Health Care System - What Went Wrong? How to Stay Out of it and Survive

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Cleaning Stained Glass Properly

Cleaning stained glass when it becomes dirty, allows the maximum amount of light to pass through it and thus maintains its beauty.

Comprised of several different colors and shapes of favrile glass, the beauty of this glass depends on the light it receives and transmits. The amount of the light and the direction that it hits the glass can constantly change the appearance of the artwork. Keep your stained glass table lamps and floor lamps and window hangings, chandeliers and wall sconces looking their best to show off their original colors.

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Handcrafted from favrile glass, a form of glass patented by Louis Tiffany in 1894. The glass is held together with copper and solder, and cleaning products containing vinegar, ammonia, or any acid base destroys the solder holding the glass together.

Before cleaning any lampshade or fixture, disconnect the power source (unplug from outlets).

Normal Cleaning

Light dusting with a feather duster or wipe with a clean dry cloth is all that is usually needed.

Grimy Stained Glass

For a grimy fixture, place a small dab of lemon-based furniture polish on soft clean cloth and wipe gently. Never apply the polish directly to the piece being cleaned.

Covered with Heavy Layers of Grease

For fixtures near cooking areas in kitchens, to remove heavy layers of greasy buildup or dirt, Mr. Clean Top Job® works best for cleaning the stained glass. Apply the cleaner to a soft cloth, and wipe gently. After cleaning, reapply lemon-oil based furniture polish to the shade, for best results.
Your stained glass fixtures will gleam and transmit colored light they were designed to shine through them to beautify your room.

Cleaning Stained Glass Properly

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How Does Medicare Work?

In 1965, Congress established a federally-funded health insurance program that provided healthcare benefits to senior citizens (65 years of age or above), disabled people (younger than 65) and folks of any age with end-stage renal disease (permanent kidney failure). CMS (The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) is the name of the organization, which manages Medicare. But it is the Social Security Offices, which enroll applicants to join this program and also provide detailed information about it.

Medicare has been designed to act as an adjunct to other kinds of health care insurance coverage. Most of the Americans qualify for Medicare as soon as they turn 65, but they need to have contributed in the form of "Social Security Taxes" for at least ten years.

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Medicare coverage can be categorized into four parts namely Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D.

Medicare Part A is commonly known as "Hospital Insurance or HI" and provides basic health care coverage. It covers In-Patient hospital charges, skilled nursing care, home medical care services and sanatorium care. This coverage is premium-free as the individual has already contributed to the system in the form of Social Security Taxes.

Medicare Part B is commonly known as "Medical Insurance or MI" and offers coverage for Medically-necessary services, which are not covered by Part A. These services include Outpatient hospital charges, Diagnostic tests, occupational and physical therapy and the use of some medical equipment as well. Part B involves a monthly premium, which is calculated on the basis of an individual's monthly income. Medicare Part B does not cover routine checkups and also charges co-pays and deductibles.

Medicare Part C is commonly known as "Medical Advantage Plan. Under this plan the Medicare beneficiaries avail all the benefits included in part A and B. the plus point is that these insurers also get some additional coverage like dental and vision.

Medicare Part D is also known as "Prescription Drug Plan" and is the most recent Medicare program. Medicare enters into a contract with other insurance providers, to offer drug coverage. The insurer needs to pay some extra monthly premium in order to avail prescription drug benefits.

Only part A and part B come under "Original Medicare Plan". But the original plan does not provide a proper healthcare coverage. The gaps left by the original plan can be covered by opting for MediGap Insurance also known as "Medicare Supplemental Insurance".

How Does Medicare Work?

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Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Rising Healthcare Costs and Outsourcing

The cost of healthcare in the US has been steadily increasing in the past few years, and according to some projections by consultancy firms, the trend will continue. This has lead to increasing acceptance of outsourcing by different hospitals and healthcare providers across the country. Information technology, medical transcription, medical billing, and medical coding outsourcing have been increasing in response to the need to reduce cost.

Healthcare Costs On the Rise

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On the 15th of September, New York based consultancy firm, Towers Watson (NYSE:TW), projected an 8.2% increase in employer health care costs for 2011. According to Ron Fontanetta, senior health care consultant with Towers Watson, "Employees today are adjusting to historically lower-than-average merit pay increases, while at the same time facing higher health care contributions, copays and deductibles. This combination could adversely affect many employees and intensify the growing affordability crisis."

Meanwhile, Chicago based company, Hewitt Associates (NYSE:HEW), estimates that it may be as much as 9%. In Chicago, the projection is as high as 12.4%. The figure is the highest it's been in five years.

In a statement by Hewitt's health care practice leader Ken Sperling said, "Employers continue to struggle to balance the significant health care needs of an aging workforce with the economic realities of a difficult business environment."

The report attributes the increase to an aging workforce, coupled with increasing costs of technology as well as the health care reform act.

Cost And Outsourcing

There's certainly no doubt that the cost of healthcare is increasing and in response, healthcare providers and hospitals are struggling to maximize revenue while minimizing expenses in order to reduce the cost on consumers.

One example is Hendrick Medical Center, who, on the 7th of September, signed a managed service and recruitment process outsourcing contract with AMN Healthcare Services (NYSE:AHS). Ralph Henderson, AMN President for the Nursing and Allied divisions, said that the contract would result in, "lower bill rates and operational costs, reduced liability and mitigated insurance risks, and increased compliance with clinical standards."

Outsourcers in the meantime are expanding into the healthcare space in order to take advantage of the opportunity.

As MaryAnne Pace, co-founder of company, Health BluePrints stated, "Healthcare providers are looking for solutions to increase net cash, achieve revenue cycle performance improvement, enhance operational efficiency, and improve overall patient and physician satisfaction." The company was recently acquired by NCO Group, who along with the acquisition also released a new end-to-end Healthcare Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) solution on the 13th of September.

Another company moving into the healthcare space is Tricom India (NSE:TRICOM), who is currently acquiring US healthcare service provider GTESS Corporation. The news announced on the 14th of September came after Tricom India announced that it recently secured a five-year contract from a US-based healthcare firm for million. Meanwhile, Conifer Health Solutions also announced an acquisition on the 28th of September. The company is acquiring MediHealth Outsourcing in order to strengthen its position in the healthcare outsourcing space.

Healthcare Numbers

As the trend of rising healthcare continues, healthcare providers and hospitals are looking to reduce costs, and at this point one of the solutions they are turning to is outsourcing - an opportunity that outsourcers are gearing to take advantage of. Healthcare, just like any other business, has to worry about the numbers.

Rising Healthcare Costs and Outsourcing

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Lutron Vs Somfy - Comparisons and Differences

"What is the difference between Somfy and Lutron?"

This is a question that many motorized shading customers ask us every day. However, after many years in this industry, I have never been able to provide a simple, two or three sentence response to this query. The fact is that there are many differences, some glaring and some more nuanced. This series of articles will (finally) provide a complete answer to this common question. The first article will offer a simple overview of the primary difference between the two companies; subsequent articles will go into much greater depth and detail.

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Lutron and Somfy are the two dominant players in the motorized shades industry. Broadly speaking, each falls into the category of motorized shades and both sell their products through a vast network of dealers/installers. However, a defining, fundamental difference lies in the fact that Pennsylvania-based Lutron manufactures motorized shades (shades 2B motors) as well as controls and does not sell its motors separately. Somfy, a French company, manufactures only motors and controls and does not sell shades of any kind.

It cannot be overstated that in both cases, the end customer's experience will depend on how well the product is installed and the service and professionalism of the motorized shade provider. Installation quality can vary more than any product differences and this will always be the defining success (or failure) of any job. Installers must be trained properly and held to high quality and service standards. Both Somfy and Lutron provide frequent training sessions for their products, but in the end, the dealer must make the commitment to ongoing education for all staff persons. There are important feature differences between the two systems, which subsequent articles will cover, but few customers will care about these issues if the installation was shoddy, shades did not fit or wiring mistakes were made.

As stated above, Lutron delivers a fully motorized shade with controls. In doing so, Lutron reaches down the value chain further than Somfy. Therefore, in terms of total system appearance and matching, Lutron's shades, being all from a single source have little room for variance. All the components are designed to fit together. Along with product seamlessness, the single source model provides a high degree of manufacturer accountability. Not surprisingly, all of this comes with a price, and is one of the reasons that Lutron shading systems are more expensive than a Somfy solution.

Somfy systems involve purchasing different parts from different sources which allows any type or style of window shade from any fabricator to be motorized. This offers more choice but also opens system appearance and matching to more variance. To avoid an unfinished appearance, the dealer must ensure that the best quality, matching components (brackets, fascia, enclosures, screws etc) are used. Also, Somfy motors can be fitted into specialty shades like Hunter Douglas Silhouettes or Duettes which some clients prefer. Somfy offers more flexibility.

Lutron provides a total solution with minimal system variance and Somfy offers a critical piece of the solution, with more flexibility but greater system variance. A Lutron system costs more than a Somfy solution. But pricing is also a function of product features and whether a project is new construction or retrofit, as well as other control systems (home automation) that may be factors. This series of articles will address all of these considerations, but first, the primary difference had to be explained.

Lutron Vs Somfy - Comparisons and Differences

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What Retin-A Cream Percentage Is Good For Acne Scars and Overall Skin Improvement

Unbelievably correct percentage of retin-cream can exert magical effects on your acne-affected areas. Only you have to be sure about what Retin-A cream percentage is good for acne scars. Application of too much or too little may adversely affect your skin. Therefore, it is the right time for you to go for retinal treatments and get rid of unnecessary scarring and blemishes.

Creams containing 0.05% of Retin-A is usually prescribed by dermatologists to control Comedonal (black acne). If it causes irritation on your skin then reducing the Retin-A percentage to 0.025% helps. Some dermatologists prescribe creams with milder percentage (0.025%) of Retin-A during the first few weeks and then gradually increase the percentage (0.05%) during the final stages.

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Retinal Cream Or Lotion Treatment - Surely Miraculous

Retin-A, a chemically proven anti acne lotion and cream was specially formulated to prevent unnecessary clogging of pores and effectively and gradually sloughing away the dead cells from your skin. Other than preventing the formation of acne scars, this specially formulated retinal lotion is also known for its anti-wrinkle characteristic. It reduces your chances of looking unnecessarily aged thereby sustaining your youthful look for several years to come.

After learning about the pros and cons of Retin-A cream you should get sure about the percentage of retinal lotion specifically required for your skin type. This is essential for a perfect spotless acne treatment. Make use of that minimal amount which is enough to repair the damages done to your skin by the harmful acnes. A bit of extra amount can always be the cause of unnecessary skin irritation. However, the specialty of Retin-A cream lies in its additional capacity to treat psoriasis, flat warts and enhance the rate of skin cell turnover.

For a better and rapid improvement in the removal of acne scars you can readily combine the retinal product with glycolic acid or bleaching cream. Unfortunately as Retin-A cream removes the dead cells from your skin at the same time it also exposes the new skin to deal with pollution and harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun. Therefore, this specific retinal cream usually comes with three troublesome side effects including

1. Sun sensitivity

2. Dry skin

3. Irritated skin

Whatever may be the consequence, Retin-A cream and lotion are there to solve all your problems sincerely with firm hands.

What Retin-A Cream Percentage Is Good For Acne Scars and Overall Skin Improvement

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Monday, October 17, 2011

Cleaning Laminate Flooring

When it comes to cleaning laminate flooring, you should have a regular routine in place. By doing this you will ensure that your flooring will remain as good as the day when it was first installed.

The first thing that you need to do when cleaning your flooring is to vacuum it on a regular basis. It is important that when vacuuming your floor you raise the beater bar off the floor otherwise you could actually cause the floor to become scratched.

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Once you have vacuumed the floor the next stage is to wipe the surface of the floor down using a damp (not wet) mop. Ideally you should use a specialist laminate floor cleaning fluid or just a mixture of warm water with a small amount of detergent.

This particular cleaning routine should be carried out once or twice a week. The rest of the time during the week you can use a large dust mop to help keep dirt and grit at bay. Plus you should also immediately clear up any spills that appear on the floor otherwise it may stain. To remove the spill take a paper towel and blot up the spillage then get a damp cloth and use this to remove any residue. Also if you allow the spill to remain it could in fact damage the floor by making the area where the spill occurred to fade.

Before you start cleaning your laminate flooring it is important that you read the recommendations provided by the manufacturer. As long as you care for your laminate flooring correctly then it will look good and last for years to come.

Cleaning Laminate Flooring

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