Editorial
Creating a more harmonious work environment is a struggle for some OR leaders. Tips on how to achieve this were offered during the 2017 OR Manager Conference and the 2018 OR Business Management Conference (ORBMC), and we share some of these in the March issue. A dysfunctional atmosphere in the…
Storytelling can make or break staff morale
Disengagement costs organizations money through lost productivity, not to mention the risk of errors that a disengaged workforce brings. Yet in August 2017, Gallup reported that only 32% of people are engaged at work. Much of disengagement can be traced to what Cy Wakeman, president and founder of Reality-Based Leadership,…
Pledge makes positive culture a priority in the OR--Part 1
An organizationโs culture is shaped by the collective attitudes and behaviors of the people who work there, and if no one is willing to make personal changes, no program of the month is likely to have a lasting impact. To change their attitudes and behaviors, people must be made aware…
New guideline focuses on high-level disinfection safety
The new year brings a newly updated Guideline for Manual Chemical High-Level Disinfection (formerly the Guideline for High-Level Disinfection). This AORN guideline, which is based on a comprehensive, systematic review of research- and non-research-based evidence, recommends best practices for safe and effective high-level disinfection (HLD) performed manually when automated methods…
Total joint cases on firm footing after OR team huddles
Effective use of a daily huddle and customized software for scheduling have had a dramatic impact on efficiency at NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital in New York City. Cancellations on the day of surgery have dropped from a rate of about 10% prior to implementation of huddles to less than 1%,…
How many different procedures are right for your ASC?
When launching a new ambulatory surgery center (ASC), owners must consider a myriad of issuesโfinancing, design, building construction or purchase, regulatory compliance, certification, staffing, and marketing. Underlying all of these considerations are which procedures the center will provide and whether the ASC will be single specialty, like gastrointestinal (GI) or…
Association between safety culture and surgical outcomes
Editor's Note In this study, implementing a global change in safety culture resulted in a significant change in surgical patient outcomes as measured by the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP). After implementation of initiatives targeting communication and patient safety, surgical outcomes and culture scores…
CMS releases final update to coverage for ICDs
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized an update to its coverage policy for implantable cardiac devices (ICDs), the February 16 Modern Healthcare reports. The update expedites patient access by eliminating the waiting period for patients with an existing ICD to obtain a replacement device…
Prolonged catheter use linked to infections in regional anesthesia
Editor's Note Infection risk with peripheral and epidural catheter use in continuous regional anesthesia increases over time, especially after 4 days, this study finds. Of 44,555 continuous regional anesthesia patients analyzed in this German study, the probability of infection-free catheter use decreased each day of peripheral and epidural catheter use.…
Family care program helps cut readmissions after cardiac surgery
Editor's Note Intermountain Healthcareโs (Salt Lake City, Utah) Partners in Healing program, which involves family members in in-patient care, helped reduce 30-day readmissions after cardiac surgery by 65%, the February 13 Healthcare Finance reports. The program enables family members to help with basic care, which in turn prepares them for…