“Each year, diagnostic errors result in the deaths of an estimated 44,000 to 80,000 patients, and many thousands die because of teamwork and communication errors affecting their care or because they do not receive necessary evidence-based interventions,” according to an article published online last year in JAMA. No one would…

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More than 7 million Americans are living with a prosthetic knee or hip, and there is a growing incidence of adults younger than 65 undergoing these procedures, researchers reported at the 2014 annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in March. Among those over 50 years of age,…

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In many surgery departments, schedule management is a daily struggle. Staff work hard to manage case requests, juggle resources, and respond to changes, but errors, inefficiencies, and general frustration persist. The results are frequent case delays and cancellations, low utilization, high costs, low staff morale, and poor surgeon satisfaction. The…

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The steam sterilization process is complex and includes a number of important steps: decontamination, preparation and packaging, sterilization, quality control, sterile storage, and product distribution. The effectiveness of this process cannot be determined by inspection or testing of each product, and because sterility assurance is a probability function, it must…

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Loopholes in supply contracts can wreak havoc with a supply budget, but attention to detail and proper terminology can help OR managers take charge instead of being charged unnecessary fees. “Not managing your agreement will cost you 12% to 25% of the spend or 100% of any savings achieved,” Girard…

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Computers and computer-driven devices have transformed the way healthcare is delivered, and use of the technology has led to greater efficiency, error reduction, and the ability to perform some previously impossible procedures. However, it is not always easy to incorporate computer tools into traditional activities such as quality tracking and…

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Anxiety over changes in healthcare delivery and payment systems has permeated hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). Administrators are concerned about how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and other initiatives will hit the organization’s bottom line. Increasingly, perioperative services leaders are being drawn into discussions in these areas. “The OR…

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Depression affects 9% of adults in the US and 18% of hospital-employed nurses, including those who work in perioperative settings. Nurses with depression not only suffer themselves, but their illness can impact their productivity and quality of care as well as their coworkers’ work lives. Nurse managers need to be…

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