ASC executives to meet with lawmakers
The Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) annually asks members to participate in a “fly-in” to meet with members of Congress to raise awareness about the implications of health care policies. As ASCA vice president of government relations Steve Miller notes, there is nothing like hearing directly from a constituent to…
New staffing structure builds on success of specialty team model
Less than a year after adopting a “college structure” model akin to that of specialty teams, the UF & Shands Academic Health Center in Gainesville, Florida, is close to achieving a goal of 100% on-time starts. “We track first-case start times, and a report goes out every morning, so we’ll…
Focus shifts to device fragments, small miscellaneous items in RSIs
Though retained surgical items (RSIs) cases are rare, they do happen, and they take a heavy toll throughout the system in terms of steep fines, malpractice claims, and compromised patient safety. Estimates of RSIs range from 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 7,000 procedures. And a 2003 study by the…
Editorial
Hospitalizations involving a lost sponge or instrument cost more than $60,000 on average, and related malpractice suits can cost hospitals between $100,000 and $200,000 per case, according to a March 8 USA Today article on retained surgical items (RSIs). “For many hospitals, lost sponges and other surgical items aren’t considered…
OR noise levels linked with increased risk for error
Noise in the OR, whether it is the sound of loud equipment, talkative team members, or music, is a patient and surgical safety factor that can affect the processing of auditory information by surgeons and other members of the OR team, finds a study. The study is the first to…
'Just Culture' encourages error reporting, improves patient safety
During a procedure in the OR, a medication is retrieved from the automated supply station and introduced onto the sterile field. The sterile field is then, unknowingly and unintentionally, contaminated by an unsterile medication. This example could happen in any operating room setting. In this case, the circulating nurse spoke…
Unprocessed tray incident prompts investigation, leads to process improvements
The circulating nurse was cleaning up after surgery in an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) when she noticed the internal chemical indicator (a Class 5 integrating indicator) had not reached its appropriate endpoint response, which is a pass. That meant an unprocessed instrument tray had been used on the patient. Her…
Fewer surgical cancellations occur after preoperative screening
Duke University Hospital has had a Pre-Operative Screening Unit (POSU) in place for the past 16 years to optimize patients prior to surgery, but until recently, there were no hard data on surgical cancellation rates. Now, a retrospective analysis has revealed that fewer cancellations occur when patients are seen in…
Free Daily News
- Study: Bariatric surgery beats lifestyle changes for patients with cirrhosis, obesity
- CMS vision shifts as agency halts funding for state programs
- Low-cost blood test predicts cardiovascular event risk
- Hospital M&A activity drops to historic low amid economic and policy uncertainty
- GAO urges HHS to improve drug shortage response coordination
- Study: US maternal mortality rises 28% in 5 years, inequities persist
- Routine preop tests catch hidden risks in outpatient cosmetic surgery, Canadian study finds
- Study: Hospital same‑day knee replacements match ASC outcomes, even in higher‑risk patients
- FDA clears AI platform for real-time surgical measurements
- Study: MRI contrast agent causes harmful metal buildup in some patients
Career Center
- Director- Clinical Operations, Operating Room, Riley Children's Hospital - Indiana University Health - Indianapolis, IN
- CARDIOTHORACIC SURGEON STANFORD MEDICINE - Stanford University, School of Medicine - Corvallis, OR
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