OR staff reap rewards of paperless patient tracking system
Clearing a patient for surgery is no easy feat, and a completely paper-based workflow can be very inefficient. Switching to a paperless tracking system has cut labor and costs in the preanesthesia screening services (PASS) department at Sinai Hospital, LifeBridge Health, Baltimore, and nurse leaders there hope to integrate the…
Step-by-step approach helps reduce specimen errors in the OR
The number of specimens that are mishandled on a nationwide basis is difficult to know, but even one such incident is too much for any patient who is affected. “If a specimen is placed in a fixative and it wasn’t supposed to be, additional testing may be compromised,” says Ann…
Editorial
Enhanced recovery protocols aren’t a new concept, but new data linking them with better outcomes in colorectal surgery patients suggest they’re worth considering—and perhaps should be more widely adopted. In a study published online in January in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS)…
Shared governance teaches staff to take ownership of decision making
Certain words and phrases are used frequently in nursing—sometimes so frequently that their true meaning is lost. For some, the term “shared governance” is one of those. What is shared governance? “A dynamic staff-leader partnership that promotes collaboration, shared decision making, and accountability for improving quality of care, safety, and…
Making the most of operational performance dashboards
Most hospitals use some form of performance dashboard to communicate with surgeons and hospital senior leadership. The dashboard is intended to show the efficiency of processes within the surgical suite. However, to be truly effective, the dashboard must provide accurate, reliable, and useful information. Does your dashboard do what you…
Perioperative surgical home optimizes patient care, Part 2
Part 1 of this two-part series, published in the March issue of OR Manager, discussed the perioperative surgical home (PSH) concept. In this article, healthcare providers who are in the planning stages of a PSH as well as those with several years of experience with using this model of care…
Gains are worth the pain in forming comanagement agreements
The changing healthcare environment is forcing physicians and hospitals to find new ways of working together to achieve top performance. As payers move to value-based purchasing and providers raise the bar on quality, efficiency, and cost savings, a sustainable model that drives results is essential. One effective physician–hospital model built…
Streamline selection and stocking to make supplies available and affordable
There are two ways to approach supply cost reduction. One is to minimize direct supply costs by optimizing product selection, controlling utilization, reducing waste, and negotiating more favorable prices. The other is to attack indirect supply costs driven by high inventories—the excess holding and labor costs associated with excessive supply…
Communication, collaboration, commitment are cornerstones of high reliability healthcare
Providing dependably excellent care for all patients all of the time is the essence of high reliability healthcare, as defined by the Joint Commission in its 2013 report. Two large health systems—Kaiser Permanente and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital—are on the path to becoming highly reliable organizations. In recent years, improved processes…
Redefining staff roles and responsibilities can help reduce turnover time
Turnover time is a major concern for OR leaders. We surveyed OR Manager readers last year to identify the business and efficiency issues they want to know more about. Reducing turnover times ranked second, just under cost control. Extended turnovers clearly affect labor costs, but they also have a strong…
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