We asked some top ambulatory surgery center (ASC) leaders, including members of OR Manager’s Editorial Advisory Board, to identify the top challenges ASC leaders are facing. Here are their responses. We believe you will see some of your own challenges reflected in their comments.   Mary Stewart, MSN, BSN, RN…

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The good news/bad news for OR leaders from the 2018 annual OR Manager Salary/Career Survey: Surgical volume continues to increase for many hospitals, but staff turnover and recruitment difficulties remain, creating challenges in meeting that increased volume. Another ongoing challenge is reimbursement changes; more than half of respondents report bundled…

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is poised to launch Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) Advanced on October 1, 2018, and is continuing its Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) bundled payment model for total hip and knee arthroplasty (THA, TKA). “Orthopedics is the most important service…

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 12 issued a proposed rule with potential changes to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule on or after January 1, 2019. According to CMS, the changes would increase the time available for physicians and other clinicians to spend with their patients…

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High patient satisfaction scores and excellent multidisciplinary teamwork are the hallmarks of a well-managed surgical services department, and Sharon Udy-Janczuk, MSN, RN, CNOR, NE-BC, the 2018 OR Manager of the Year, has bragging rights to both. By cross-training staff in the presurgical care area, OR, and postanesthesia care unit (PACU),…

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The Munro Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment Scale for Perioperative Patients© (Munro Scale) has made great strides in the past year. The tool, which assesses patients’ risk levels at each phase of surgery (preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative), is available from AORN. Cassendra Munro, MSN, RN, CNOR, developed the Munro Scale and…

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As healthcare strives to become an industry of high-reliability organizations, identifying problems proactively is key. ECRI Institute’s annual Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns for Healthcare Organizations list highlights looming patient safety challenges and offers resources for addressing them. In selecting this year’s list, ECRI Institute relied on data regarding events…

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Sometimes surgeons ask to have nonmedical devices sterilized, such as spoons, hockey pucks, and fish hooks. Healthcare staff may want to accommodate their requests, but there are times when they cannot do so. A central service (CS) should only sterilize medical devices that have undergone validation testing, which demonstrates that…

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