Some 300 surgical services leaders from across the US gathered in Orlando in February for the OR Business Management Conference to escape from winter and absorb the collective wisdom of a stellar group of presenters and exhibitors. Presentations on Lean management, scheduling innovations, staff relationships, nurse education, and cost-saving measures—to…

Read More

Every perioperative services staff member, at every level, contributes to the success or failure of the department. Exceptional leaders understand this, and they are most successful when they discourage intimidation and invite everyone to take ownership of their roles. Teamwork in the OR is the next frontier in quality perioperative…

Read More

Many healthcare professionals are all too familiar with the phenomenon of becoming burned out. In the midst of the intense work environment and long hours, they often struggle to remember why they do what they do, and they become disconnected. When Rich Bluni, RN, LHRM, kicks off this year’s OR…

Read More

Part 1 of this two-part series, published in the March issue of OR Manager, discussed the perioperative surgical home (PSH) concept. In this article, healthcare providers who are in the planning stages of a PSH as well as those with several years of experience with using this model of care…

Read More

The changing healthcare environment is forcing physicians and hospitals to find new ways of working together to achieve top performance. As payers move to value-based purchasing and providers raise the bar on quality, efficiency, and cost savings, a sustainable model that drives results is essential. One effective physician–hospital model built…

Read More

There are two ways to approach supply cost reduction. One is to minimize direct supply costs by optimizing product selection, controlling utilization, reducing waste, and negotiating more favorable prices. The other is to attack indirect supply costs driven by high inventories—the excess holding and labor costs associated with excessive supply…

Read More

Fremont Surgery Center stands in America’s heartland, about 30 miles northwest of Omaha, Nebraska. It faces economic conditions typical of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) across the country: stable revenue but minimal growth prospects. Last year, however, Fremont made a strategic move that placed it in the industry’s vanguard. Fremont was…

Read More

The medical home, consisting of a patient-centered team focusing on the coordinated delivery of care, is now embedded in the healthcare lexicon, but the perioperative surgical home (PSH) is a more recent concept that is only starting to spread across the country. “The number of hospitals in the US with…

Read More