In response to an open-ended question about what they considered their greatest accomplishments of the past year, OR directors and managers cited numerous examples. Their answers have been grouped into the categories listed below, which are arranged roughly according to how often most survey respondents cited advances in these categories.…

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OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business.   Data-rich dashboards are an effective way to communicate with surgeons and align them with OR goals, but many reporting strategies have not kept pace with changes in the surgery market.…

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Surgical volume is stable or increasing in nearly two-thirds of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), according to the 23rd annual OR Manager Salary/Career Survey. More than two-thirds (68%) of survey respondents also report that their ASCs have not experienced financial difficulties as a result of current economic conditions. These results may…

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About 70% of respondents to a nationwide survey of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) say they are trying to cut costs in reaction to changes brought about by healthcare reform. That’s the major finding of a nationwide survey of 359 administrators, directors, and office managers in ASCs, cancer centers, home health…

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It sounds like déjà vu all over again, as Yogi Berra used to say. That is likely to be the first reaction of many ambulatory surgery center (ASC) administrators to the Calendar Year 2014 Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment Proposed Rule.   Pay formula unchanged Medicare payment updates would continue at…

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A sluggish economy continues to drive OR staffing, according to the 23rd annual OR Manager Salary/Career Survey. Although economic growth in the US has ticked slightly upward, 70% of respondents say the economy affected their OR staffing in the past 6 months, comparable to 68% last year and 69% in…

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Walk into any patient care unit—whether preoperative, intraoperative, or postoperative—and you will hear numerous alarm signals. Some are signaling a medical necessity, but many are false alarm noises that do not require action. Health care workers can hear several hundred alarm signals per patient per day, which may cause alarm…

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The economy continues to present staffing and budgetary challenges, our annual staffing survey finds; little has changed since the 2008 recession despite slightly better overall conditions (see cover story). Perioperative leaders report they’ve had to reduce overtime, eliminate open positions, and tell staff to take time off without pay in…

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