New instrument shows promise as low-cost alternative to robot
Researchers at the University of Michigan (U-M), Ann Arbor, have invented a new surgical instrument with the goal of addressing a vast, unmet need in minimally invasive surgery. For less than a thousand dollars, this platform technology—currently being commercialized by the start-up FlexDex Surgical—offers capabilities similar to those of the…
Customer service can make or break a patient's experience
Healthcare providers and their patients have benefited from practices borrowed from other industries—for example, the checklists and time-outs used in aviation or the Lean management principles used in manufacturing. Applying lessons learned in the entertainment industry to the hospital setting may seem like a stretch, but Dennis Snow will explore…
Employee engagement: The path to better patient care--Part 2
Nurse engagement and leadership development were among the top concerns cited in a recent survey of healthcare leaders who reflected on challenges in nursing. To engage the nurse workforce, leaders themselves must be engaged, perioperative services leaders recently told OR Manager. In part 1 of this two-part series, they discussed…
Research explores relationship between SSIs and nurse education
Are there nursing characteristics such as certification status or educational attainment that impact surgical site infection rates? The answer to questions such as this may provide evidence of modifiable factors that could lessen surgical site infections (SSIs) and thus decrease the financial and emotional impact from these adverse events. The…
Study: Ureteroscopes remain contaminated after cleaning, sterilization
Editor's Note Techniques used to clean and sterilize flexible ureteroscopes left behind contamination that included debris, residue, and bacteria, in this study presented June 14 at the 44th Annual Conference of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control. Researchers with Ofstead & Associates (St Paul, Minnesota) sampled 16 ureteroscopes at…
FDA: Hospira recalls Sodium Bicarbonate, Quelicin, and Potassium Phosphates injections
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 16 announced the recall by Hospira, Inc, a Pfizer company, of the following: 42 lots of 8.4% Sodium Bicarbonate Injection, USP, 50 mL vials 5 lots of Neut (Sodium Bicarbonate 4% additive solution) 5 mL vials 5 lots of Quelicin…
Joint Commission: Revisions to LS, EC chapters effective January 2018
Editor's Note Revisions to the Life Safety (LS) and Environment of Care (EC) chapters for Behavioral Health Care, Laboratory, Nursing Care Centers, and Office-Based Surgery accreditation programs, based on adoption of the 2012 editions of the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 101: Life Safety Code and NFPA 99: Health Care…
FDA issues Safety Alert for frameless stereotaxic navigation systems
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 15 issued a Safety Alert for frameless stereotaxic navigation systems because of navigational accuracy errors during surgical procedures. Some of these errors have led to patient deaths, serious or life-threatening injuries, and inaccurate, aborted, or prolonged surgical procedures. The FDA…
Effect of multiple complications on postop mortality rates
Editor's Note Failure to rescue occurs predominantly in patients who have more than one complication with a dose-response relationship as complications accrue, this study finds. More than 266,000 patients in the Veterans Affairs Surgical Quality Improvement Program were included in the analysis. Of those who had a complication, more than half…
Relationship between bariatric surgery outcomes and Medicare expenditures
Editor's Note Medicare payments for bariatric surgery are significantly lower at hospitals with low complication rates, and cost savings are most prominent in patients at highest risk for complications, this study finds. The analysis of 38,374 bariatric surgery patients found a strong correlation between complication rates and episode payments−hospitals in…
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