Editor's Note New research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing shows patient and nurse outcomes in Kaiser Permanente hospitals were significantly better than other hospitals. Differences in nursing explained a significant proportion of Kaiser’s outcomes advantages. The researchers found that Kaiser hospitals have significantly better nurse work environments,…

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Editor's Note The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission has voted unanimously to approve the state’s first nurse staffing mandate. It calls for no more than two patients to be assigned to one nurse in all ICUs, including burn units and NICUs. In some cases just one patient is assigned to one…

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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…

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Many healthcare professionals are all too familiar with the phenomenon of becoming burned out. In the midst of the intense work environment and long hours, they often struggle to remember why they do what they do, and they become disconnected. When Rich Bluni, RN, LHRM, kicks off this year’s OR…

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Perioperative nurse leaders anticipate a tsunami of retirements will soon sweep away the wisdom that makes the OR the profitable cost center it is. A 2013 survey found that more than a third (37.8%) of OR nurse leaders plan to retire by 2018 and nearly two-thirds (64.8%) plan to exit…

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Staff in the OR must be fully engaged each day to ensure they are providing excellent patient care. But finding time to develop that engagement is particularly challenging for OR leaders. “The OR environment is intense and dynamic, changing minute by minute,” says Amy Bethel, MPA, RN, NE-BC, from UnityPoint…

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Union membership has declined steeply in recent decades. Increasingly, organized labor is targeting the healthcare industry as a growth opportunity. This is creating a leadership challenge for OR directors and managers. In 2012, approximately 21% of hospitals in the US had a union nursing staff. That percentage could soon increase…

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Developing a vacation selection process that is fair to everyone can be a daunting challenge for OR managers. The right balance between flexibility and adequate coverage can make or break staff satisfaction. Having time away from the hospital is important for all OR personnel, but perhaps none more so than…

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In the face of a changing healthcare landscape, staffing levels are stable, according to the 24th annual OR Manager Salary/Career Survey. Nearly two-thirds of respondents say staff turnover and the number of open RN and surgical technologist (ST) positions have stayed the same in the past year. When those positions…

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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…

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