Editor's Note This retrospective cohort study from researchers at the University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, finds that children having surgical procedures while infected with COVID-19 may be at increased risk for development of pulmonary complications. The analysis included 73 pediatric patients who had surgical procedures within…

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Staffing and labor costs have been consuming the thoughts of managers at all levels of leadership. Since the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated work conditions and safety concerns, healthcare leaders have had to deal with an unprecedented number of resignations and increased turnover with the rise of travel nursing. Calls for greater…

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Concerns about the pipeline of OR nurses existed long before COVID-19, but the pandemic has heightened these concerns. Many nurses plan to exit the profession in the next few years (sidebar, Workforce outlook). Unfortunately, the pipeline of replacement nurses is nearly dry as student experiences in the OR have been…

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Editor's Note This study, led by researchers from the University of Rochester (NY) School of Medicine, finds that the early response to the COVID-19 pandemic did not increase disparities in access to major surgical procedures. Of 3,470,905 adults hospitalized for major surgical procedures at 719 facilities between January 1, 2018,…

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Editor's Note Delayed elective surgical procedures because of COVID-19 resulted in more emergency department (ED) visits and the need for urgent interventions for gallstone disease but not inguinal hernias, this Canadian study finds. Researchers identified 74,709 elective cholecystectomies and 60,038 elective inguinal hernia repairs. During COVID-19 first and second waves…

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GENERAL Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Department of Defense or the US Government. Developing OR nurses for the future is a goal of all OR managers. Orientation programs can vary depending on the…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association, on April 20, announced the launch of a Comprehensive Heart Attack Center certification program, which recognizes hospitals providing care to the most complex and critically ill patients. To be certified, hospitals must provide 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week on-site coverage for primary percutaneous…

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Editor's Note Machine learning (ML) models designed by surgeons at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston show a high level of accuracy in predicting which types of patients are most likely to have a hernia recurrence or other complications after surgery in this study. Of 725…

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Editor's Note The Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, is giving surgical patients an option to recover outside the hospital with comforts of home and with immediate access to a care team if needed. The Mayo Clinic program, called “Monitoring at Charter House,” allows physicians to arrange for US and international patients…

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What happens when global supply chains—which are already typically operated lean across the board—are hit with a once-in-a-century pandemic? An ongoing, collective lesson in economics. The problem is not hard to understand: COVID-19 shutdowns brought manufacturing to a near standstill, during which time the demand for goods increased, and now there…

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