In-vessel co-composting of horse stable bedding waste and blood meal at different C/N ratios: process evaluation.

Abattoir blood meal is rich in nitrogen and its potential as a co-composting material for horse stable bedding waste was evaluated at two C/N ratios -32 (LBM, low blood meal) and 16 (HBM, high blood meal) - to improve the nutrient contents of the final compost. The mix was composted for 7 days in a 10 tonne/day in-vessel composter and cured aerobically. After 56 days ofcomposting, the ammoniacal-N, CO2 evolution rate and C/N ratio of both LBM and HBM were within the guideline values; however, delayed decomposition and lower seed germination index were observed with HBM.

Influence of different mixing ratios on in-vessel co-composting of sewage sludge with horse stable straw bedding waste: maturity and process evaluation.

Composting sewage sludge alone would reduce the decomposition efficiency due to free limited porosity in sludge. To alleviate this, the use of horse stable straw bedding waste (HSB) was evaluated as a co-composting material with sewage sludge in a 10 tonnes day(-1) in-vessel composter for a period of 7 days before curing in a static aeration pile. Sludge was mixed with HSB at 1 : 1.

Development of an appropriate list of surgical procedures of a specified maximum anesthetic complexity to be performed at a new ambulatory surgery facility.

Unlabelled: A common but difficult task for a hospital when it decides to open a freestanding ambulatory surgery facility is how to decide which surgical procedures should be done at the new facility. This is necessary in order to determine how many operating rooms to plan for the new facility and which ancillary services are needed on-site. In this case study, we describe a novel methodology that we used to develop a comprehensive list of procedures to be done at a new ambulatory facility.

Use of linear programming to estimate impact of changes in a hospital's operating room time allocation on perioperative variable costs.

Background: Administrators at hospitals with a fixed annual budget may want to focus surgical services on priority areas to ensure its community receives the best health services possible. However, many hospitals lack the detailed managerial accounting data needed to ensure that such a change does not increase operating costs. The authors used a detailed hospital cost database to investigate by how much a change in allocations of operating room (OR) time among surgeons can increase perioperative variable costs.