Editor's Note A March 4 study in JAMA Network Open underscores the persistence of the “weekend effect,” a surgical care phenomenon in which the risk of postoperative complications, readmissions and mortality rises immediately before the weekend. The research suggests variations in staffing, resource availability, and care coordination may contribute to…

Read More

Reduced costs, faster recovery, and other advantages can make outpatient surgical procedures more convenient for providers and patients alike. Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are incredibly safe, but a lot of work goes into infection control. Cross-trained staff often wear many hats, and limited budgets may not leave room for dedicated…

Read More

From sharps and blood-soaked surgical instruments to discarded anesthetic agents, biohazardous waste from ORs can threaten human health and the environment. In addition, failure to adhere to regulatory requirements can result in significant fines. However, the volume and diversity of biohazardous waste can create challenges with managing this material. Mitigating…

Read More

Starting a new job can be stressful for anyone, but nursing comes with a particular set of pressures. A 2024 survey of 6,000 nurses from the American Nurses Association (ANA), in partnership with McKinsey and Company, found that an astonishing 45% of early-tenure nurses reported they were somewhat likely to…

Read More

It is often said that small actions lead to big results. This so happens to be the case with hand hygiene compliance (HHC) in healthcare. Imagine a simple act, like washing hands, cutting infection rates by half—hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) and surgical site infections being reduced simply by improving handwashing behaviors.…

Read More

Takeaways • HR dashboards facilitate tracking key performance indicators related to recruitment, retention, and staffing needs. • HR dashboard data facilitate planning for current operations as well as new endeavors. • Elements of a successful HR dashboard include capability to determine users’ needs, to filter data in multiple ways, and…

Read More

Takeaways • The prevalence of needlesticks and other sharp object injuries to OR team members is 42.8%, an increase of 16% over the past decade. • New research and perspectives are shaping the discourse around sharps safety, such as new and expanded evidence-based practices presented in AORN’s 2025 update to…

Read More

Health systems are fundamentally capital intensive. They are regulated; depend on highly educated, high-cost employees; and operate under complex reimbursement structures. Investing in new technologies and infrastructure upgrades is imperative to keeping up with the latest medical advances. But what happens when capital funds are insufficient or no longer available?…

Read More

Editor's Note Universitätsmedizin Berlin reduced anesthesia-related carbon emissions by more than 80% since 2018 by eliminating high-impact anesthetic gases, implementing education initiatives, and revising clinical guidelines, according to a February 27 report in Medical Xpress. The hospital’s efforts targeted desflurane, an anesthetic gas with an extreme climate impact—nearly 8,000 times…

Read More

Editor's Note Prolonged exposure to general anesthesia during surgery contributes to long-term cognitive decline, affecting executive functioning, selective attention, mental speed, and information processing, according to a February 18 study published in the European Journal of Anaesthesiology. This prospective longitudinal cohort study followed 1,823 adults aged 25–84 in the Netherlands…

Read More