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PCB007-Nov2019

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NOVEMBER 2019 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 89 What Not to Do When analyzing all of the reasons that orga- nizational changes fail, one thing stands out and needs to be acknowledged; most of the failure modes can be traced back in some way, shape, or form, to leadership. Avoid following the top 10 reasons change fails list (Figure 2), and you will remove major obstacles. Conclusion Manufacturing strategy is complex, and each industry has its own unique set of products, processes, and challenges. While there is no paint-by-numbers way of implementing a qual- ity management system, there are certain prin- ciples, tools, and methodologies that should be a part of any successful program. PCB007 Steve Williams is the president of The Right Approach Consulting. To read past columns or contact Williams, click here. Figure 2: The top 10 reasons change fails. (Source: Quality 101 Handbook) Pacifier Biosensor Could Help Monitor Newborn Health Wearable biosensors that non-invasively monitor health and fitness are growing in popularity among adults. But adopting this technology for use with ba- bies is difficult because the devices are often bulky or have rigid surfaces that could harm infants' delicate skin. Now researchers reporting in ACS's journal Analytical Chemistry say they have developed a pacifier-based biosensor that tracks real-time glucose levels in saliva. It could ultimately help diagnose and treat di-abetes in the smallest of patients. Continuous glucose monitoring in newborns, avail- able only in major hospitals, usually requires pierc- ing the infant's skin to reach interstitial fluid. Joseph Wang, Alberto Escarpa and colleagues wanted to de- velop a baby-friendly biosensor in the form of a pacifier that could collect saliva and an- alyze it for biomark- ers. Researchers made a pacifier with a nipple that contained a nar- row channel designed so that when an infant sucked on the pacifi- er, small amounts of saliva would be trans- ferred through the chan nel to a detec- tion chamber. There, an enzyme attached to an elec- trode strip would convert glucose in the fluid to a weak electrical signal, which could be detected wireless- ly by a cellphone app. Researchers haven't yet test- ed the device with babies, but they conducted a pre- liminary analysis with adult type 1 diabetes patients. Using the pacifier, the team detected changes in glu- cose concentrations in the patients' saliva before and after a meal. The device could someday be configured to monitor other disease biomarkers, the researchers say. (Source: ACS) A pacifier biosensor could someday be used to non-in- vasively monitor glucose in the saliva of infants. Credit: Adapted from Analytical Chem- istry 2019. DOI: 10.1021/acs. analchem.

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