Safety Is technology part of the answer for nursing staff woes? As COVID-19 patients continue to fill hospital beds, caregivers are feeling exhausted, burned out, and unappreciated. OR nurses have been especially hit hard, as shifts in surgeries and overflowing patient wards stretch OR nurses beyond their limits and comfort zones.…
Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are one of the fastest-growing and highest-margin segments of the healthcare industry. As ASCs continue to expand, facilities need to enhance their workflow processes and procedures to help divert staff more toward actual patient care. Crash cart management is an aspect for ASCs where time and…
According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), the global ambulatory surgery center (ASC) market is valued at around $81 billion, as of 2020, and it is projected to reach $120 billion by 2027. The ASC market in the US is estimated at almost $22 billion, with intelligence company…
Nurses have the highest incidence of work-related musculoskeletal injuries in the US, and OR nurses have the highest incidence among all nursing specialties. Estimates in the literature say more than 50% report chronic back pain, and 10% must leave their profession entirely because of back injuries. It is also estimated…
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the healthcare industry could fill an entire academic curriculum at this point, let alone a single article. But one potential silver lining among the storms of bad news is the increasing migration of elective procedures from hospitals to ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). Although…
Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are ramping up cardiovascular and peripheral vascular service lines, as Medicare offers payment for a growing number of cardiac procedures and accrediting bodies offer support for this methodology. In 2021, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission reported that the number of ASCs billing Medicare for cardiology procedures…
Among Surgical Care Affiliates’ (SCA) 260-plus facilities in the US, at least 10% have added cardiovascular/peripheral vascular service capabilities. SCA experts anticipate more growth in this area. However, any successful launch starts with an organizational focus on patient safety, says Ezra Erb, vice president for clinical quality at SCA, which…
Each year, there are more studies raising concerns about infections associated with endoscopic procedures and the techniques used to clean and sterilize or high-level disinfect (HLD) endoscopic devices. In this article, in partnership with Boston Scientific, epidemiologist Cori L. Ofstead, MSPH, president and CEO of Ofstead & Associates, St Paul,…
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in 31 hospital patients has at least one healthcare-associated infection (HAI) on any given day. To help mitigate HAIs, implementing infection control procedures and policies, frequently performing hand hygiene by all staff and patients, and keeping the healthcare environment…
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons projects that total hip replacement (THR) and total knee replacement (TKR) procedures will increase to 635,000 and 1.28 million, respectively, by 2030. That leads to a tremendous amount of Episode of Care opportunities. How can we as clinicians ensure the best possible experience for…
