Surgeon-nurse duo delivers excellent, efficient patient care
The number of nurse practitioners is expected to double by 2025, and the need for surgical first assistants is growing as residents’ work hours are reduced and surgeon assistants are eliminated to cut costs. This situation offers a great opportunity for advanced practice perioperative nurses. A double certification of nurse…
Editorial
Hospital safety scores released by the Leapfrog Group on April 29 show a 6.3% average improvement since 2012. Performance at almost a third of hospitals has improved at least 10% since 2012, but some hospitals’ scores have dropped. And with medical errors tied to more than 400,000 deaths per year…
Rounding tool off to a good start in improving patient satisfaction
A mobile, web-based rounding tool is allowing the perioperative leadership team at Vail Valley Medical Center (VVMC) in Vail, Colorado, to collect, analyze, and report on information gathered from surgeons, staff, and patients to improve quality of care and move toward high reliability. Software designed by MyRounding Solutions in Littleton,…
Simple but thoughtful process changes can improve patient satisfaction
OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business. Better-performing surgery departments have always paid careful attention to the patient experience. Today, payment reform and market evolution are making patient satisfaction in an OR more important than ever. Patient…
Surgical liaisons: The bridge between the OR and family members
Surgery is a stressful time not only for patients but also for their families. Using a surgical liaison to communicate the status of an operation to those in the waiting area has boosted the satisfaction of patients, families, and surgeons, say perioperative directors whose hospitals have these positions. The liaison…
Faster procedures benefit patients and bottom line
Shortening the time it takes for an outpatient procedure may increase volume, OR utilization, and hence revenue—but that is not the point, say the nation’s top performers in a recent survey of procedure times. Rather, the purpose is to enhance patient safety and satisfaction. For example, less time in the…
Editorial
There are good reasons to think about how patients experience your OR and your facility. It isn’t about private rooms and better food. The quality of their experience is fundamental to keeping patients safe. A new analysis from HealthGrades finds hospitals with the highest ratings for nurse and physician communications…
Overcoming low health literacy: Helping your patient understand
Imagine sitting through a discussion with a surgeon or nurse and not understanding a single word—or worse, misinterpreting key information. Unfortunately, that’s the situation for many patients and their families because millions of people in the US have insufficient health literacy skills. A review in the American Journal of Surgery…
Editorial
Where would you expect a patient to look to learn about the quality of your hospital’s services? Maybe the Joint Commission, Hospital Compare, or HealthGrades? Think Facebook, Google Reviews, or YouTube—that’s where many are likely to turn first. Social media increasingly are the go-to source for consumer reviews of any…
Giving patients timely, accurate pricing
What's your price for a colonoscopy?" When a patient calls your hospital for pricing, who takes the call? Will the patient receive a clear answer quickly so he or she will know how much he or she is likely to owe out of pocket? These calls are increasing as patients…
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