Three new studies on reducing urinary tract infections (UTIs) were reported at the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) conference in July. Researchers identified several process changes that, once implemented, brought down infection rates. Each study and its findings are described below. The S.T.O.P.…
Learning to circulate can be overwhelming and intimidating for new nurses. They may learn two or three different ways to set up a room, on two or three different days, from two or three different preceptors. Having a consistent, systematic way to set up an OR can help relieve the…
Editor's Note Magnet recognition is associated with better patient care experiences, which may enhance reimbursement for hospitals, this study finds. Nurse researchers compared 212 Magnet hospitals with 212 non-Magnet hospitals. Patients in Magnet hospitals gave their hospitals higher overall ratings, were more likely to recommend their hospitals, and reported more positive…
Successful hiring for the OR depends on ensuring nurses have the right education and clinical skills as well as the right attitude: Are they are willing and able to be team players? OR nurse leaders at Saint Luke’s Health System (SLHS), Kansas City, Missouri, have been revamping their intern and…
There is no OR nurse university. Nurses can’t go away to college, pay tuition, and learn to be a perioperative nurse. “Faced with a staffing shortfall, how are we going to deal with this? How are they going to learn and acquire skills needed to work in the OR?” These…
What started out as a software package to train medical device representatives for the OR has evolved into a program to train OR personnel to scrub and support a “rep-less” model. The software, designed by a former perioperative nurse, helps orient staff to new procedures, documents their competency, and streamlines…
Demand for anesthesia technicians is on the rise, according to a recent Chicago Tribune headline. The article touts the position as a way to “work in the operating room without going to medical school.” Although this description may be an overreach, it does help raise awareness of the growing and…
Recent highly publicized outbreaks of infections linked to improper reprocessing of flexible endoscopes have raised concerns about infection prevention in gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures. Because of the headlines, legislatures are hearing from their constituents that they are fearful of being exposed to infections, and legislatures are getting involved. The Society of…
What do you do when your orientation program isn’t effective in educating and retaining OR staff? Carol Pehotsky, MSN, RN, ACNS-BC, CPAN, director of peri-operative education at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, found herself in that position 3 years ago. “We blew it all up and started over,” she…
For the past 3 years, Tanner Health System has conducted “Education Day,” a mandatory perioperative skills course that supplements online courses, in-services, and other types of education. Staff attend the half-day course on a Saturday in early January to learn about complicated high-risk, low-volume, problem-prone procedures as well as new…
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