How did OR Manager get started? We had an idea and worked to make it happen. This is the story of a small group of 5 women who have built OR Manager over the past 28 years. They include, besides myself (Ellie Schrader), Pat Patterson, Judy Dahle, MS, MSG, RN;…

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One would think that reducing surgical complications would lower a hospital’s costs in addition to being the right thing to do. But the hospital’s bottom line can be seriously affected. The loss can be substantial unless new surgical volume is added to make up for the loss, a new analysis…

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Perioperative leaders are actively planning for future staffing needs. Still, the majority (56%) say they’re having problems filling staff nurse positions. And two-thirds (68%) anticipate problems in the next 5 years, according to OR Manager’s succession planning survey (related article). Nurse leaders in surgery accept the need “to grow their…

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First article in a 2-part series.   Management should be the job people aspire to, says John Olmstead, MBS, RN, CNOR, FACHE, director of surgical services and emergency department at The Community Hospital in Munster, Indiana. “In too many hospitals, it’s the hot potato. People say, ‘I wouldn’t want to…

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Attendance set a new record high, and excitement filled Caesars Palace in Las Vegas as perioperative nurse leaders gathered to celebrate 25 years of the OR Manager Conference held October 24 to 26, 2012. At the silver anniversary event, 1242 attendees discussed posters with their presenters, networked with colleagues and…

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While the nation concentrates on the consumer implications of health care reform, ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) are examining its provisions for clues to the impact it will have on their operations and revenue. One likely outcome is that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) will transform their supply…

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Does your OR have a Hodad, a Raptor, or a Shrek? These are handles for dangerous surgeons that Martin Makary, MD, MPH, describes in his scathing new book, Unaccountable. Dr Makary, a surgeon and patient safety leader at Johns Hopkins, advocates a “transparency revolution” to make data public and motivate…

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She recalls it as one of her worst days as an OR director. She was paged to the postanesthesia care unit. When she got there, the surgeon told her there had been a horrible mistake. He had performed a total knee replacement on the wrong side. The surgeon asked if…

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