Periop Nursing
ECRI lists Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns for 2024
Editor’s Note ECRI and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) every year compiles and unveils a list of the top 10 patient safety concerns affecting the healthcare industry. The report highlights issues what healthcare leaders should focus on within their own organizations and opportunities to address preventable harm. The…
Study: Dedicated smoke evacuators reduce exposure to particles, VOCs
Editor's Note Dedicated smoke evacuators reduce the number of particles and levels of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde in surgical smoke during laparotomy, according to a study published online October 25, 2023 and in the March 2024 issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons The randomized, double-blind clinical trial…
Bedside portable device offers real-time monitoring for pancreatic fistulas, other conditions
Editor's Note Researchers at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) and the University Hospital Dresden (UKD) have developed a portable, droplet-based millifluidic device that can monitor patients for postoperative pancreatic fistula in the critical first days after surgery. The same technology might also be expanded to analyze other body fluids and diseases.…
A look back: 10 years of staffing data show scope of challenges for OR leaders
Takeaways The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated staffing problems, and although some parameters have improved, challenges remain. Surgical volume took a sharp drop during the pandemic but is now rebounding. Over the years, the gap in difficulty between recruiting RNs and recruiting STs has narrowed. Last month, OR Manager looked back on…
CNOR specialty designations distinguish uncommon skillsets
The Competency & Credentialing Institute (CCI) is excited to announce a new development in our certified perioperative nurse (CNOR®) certification program: the introduction of specialty designations. Now, perioperative nurses can specialize in cardiac, bariatric, orthopedic, or vascular surgery, just as RNs can choose oncology, pediatrics, or emergency. A specialty designation…
Study examines high emergency department use by transgender Medicare patients
Editor's Note A study showing greater likelihood for transgender (TGD) Medicare patients to use the emergency department highlights the need to train staff in transgender-inclusive care, the authors argue. Conducted by the Brown University School of Public Health, the study was published February 13 in JAMA Internal Medicine. As reported…
Healthcare employment up in January
Editor's Note Healthcare employment in the US rose by 70,300 from January to February, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on February 2. That is compared to an overall monthly gain of 353,000 in January—similar to the 333,000 gained in December—for a total of…
Session: Strategy to reduce temporary labor expense
Editor's Note “How many of you are still struggling with staffing?” Tammy Straub, MSN, RN, APRN, CNOR, administrator of perioperative services at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network, asked attendees of this session. Everyone in the room raised their hands. Straub and Alexandre Warman, MBA, CEBA, administrator of perioperative business…
FDA updates safety recall of certain saline, sterile water medical products
Editor's Note The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 24 updated its safety recall communication from November 6 to add to the voluntary recalls of saline and sterile water medical products associated with Nurse Assist, LLC. The FDA recall notice lists various water-based medical products manufactured by Nurse…
Blast from the past: Improving medication safety in the OR
The US Food and Drug Administration receives more than 100,000 medication-related reports, and some of them, according to the AORN Journal, “involve patient death.” AORN’s 2024 updated guidelines include safety updates for perioperative staff when handling, transporting, and administering medication, which can be a complex process prone to errors. In…
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- GAO urges HHS to strengthen cybersecurity oversight
- Study: GLP-1s reduce TKA complications for non-diabetic patients with obesity
- Study finds high rates of preventable, adverse events in perioperative care
- AMA urges stronger radiation protections
- Study: Digital tool detects preoperative pediatric anxiety, depression
- Hospital safety grades show progress in reducing medical errors, infections
- Analysis: Overuse of back surgeries costs Medicare $2 billion, risks patient safety
- AI-powered surgical robot learns by watching
- AHA's Congressional "wish list" calls for financial relief, patient access, workforce protections
- Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rates lag pre-pandemic levels, racial disparities persist