Retaining well-performing staff reduces the amount of resources, particularly time and money, that OR leaders need to spend on recruiting and training new employees. Part 1 of this two-part series provided an overview of retention issues and discussed the importance of the leader’s role and a positive work culture (OR…

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Producing OR Manager each month and OR a.m. at the start of every day imposes a perpetual sense of time speeding by as we curate a wealth of information to help readers excel in their daily mission. We believe that OR Manager and OR a.m. together direct readers to the…

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Anyone seeking a break from the winter weather and a stimulating educational experience will find both at the 2020 OR Business Management Conference (ORBMC), which takes place January 27-30 in Weston, Florida. The highly relevant and timely presentations, along with networking events that connect OR business professionals with colleagues and…

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At Virginia Commonwealth University System (VCU Health) in Richmond, we are using quality standards to establish operational definitions for elements of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS). This article describes what those standards are and how they are implemented. Previous articles in this series appeared in the October 2019 and November…

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In the never-ending quest to improve patient care, we are always seeking better ways to process medical devices. Many leading experts now recommend transitioning from high-level disinfection (HLD) to sterilization for semicritical items. Semicritical items are instruments or objects that contact mucous membranes or nonintact skin of a patient, but…

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A strong labor and delivery (L&D) department is a key driver of hospital success. L&D not only contributes significantly to hospital profitability, it plays an important role in establishing and cementing patient loyalty. And as hospitals increasingly take responsibility for community health, an effective birth program can make a measurable…

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Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) have increasing incentives to offer total joint replacements (TJR) as Medicare expands the list of covered procedures. However, there’s a lot to consider in this particular service line. “There are many things to arrange that aren’t required with other service lines, particularly as home care of…

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The Big Easy put on a big program for the more than 1,400 perioperative nurse leaders and other healthcare professionals who flocked to New Orleans in September for the annual OR Manager Conference. Both the conference and PACU Manager Summit offered provocative new input and highly entertaining networking events. The…

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