Surgical errors and emergencies can happen at any time, at any facility. For ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), a major challenge is finding official guidance on the topic. For the most part, it’s up to the individual facility to craft its own policies, competencies, and drills for OR emergencies. “The Association…

Read More

Editor's Note US hospitals with more internationally trained nurses have more stable, educated, nursing workforces, and collaboration among healthcare professionals is not hindered, this study finds. Researchers analyzed 2013 survey data from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators that included responses from 24,045 nurses (2,156 were trained outside the…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced February 19 that the Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth has been awarded the first Primary Heart Attack Center (PHAC) certification by the Joint Commission and American Heart Association. The certification standardizes and improves coordinated systems of care for identification, assessment, monitoring,…

Read More

Editor's Note A new HCA Healthcare survey finds that in the past 4 years Millennials and Gen Z nurses have gone from being the minority to now being the majority in the employee population, and their professional priorities and expectations differ from past generations, according to a February 11 report…

Read More

Editor's Note In this article, the American College of Surgeons and the Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, which launched the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery (ISCR) in 2016, announce that they are expanding the scope…

Read More

Editor's Note Though many self-help books advise people to find their passion, this is terrible advice, says LaRae Quy in the January 15 issue of SmartBrief/Leadership. Passion is a “hedonistic approach to life,” that is popular right now, she says. People think they need to be passionate about their jobs…

Read More

An effective handoff helps ensure care transitions are safe and efficient, but achieving the ideal handoff can be challenging. Part 1 of this two-part series provided an overview of the role of handoffs in the perioperative setting (OR Manager, January 2020, 22-23, 25). This article offers best practices for successful…

Read More

Most hospital leaders are well aware of the coming wave of nurse retirements. However, few leaders understand that this wave will likely hit the OR even earlier than other departments. According to research from NSI Nursing Solutions, surgical services nurses are on average older than other nursing professionals. Because OR…

Read More

Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a rare but life-threatening surgical complication that seems to turn the effects of general anesthesia upside down. Instead of relaxing, muscles become rigid, releasing large amounts of acid and potassium into the blood. Instead of a normal slowing of breathing, respirations quicken, and end-tidal CO2 rises.…

Read More

A care transition poses a danger point for patients—failing to “hand off” needed information from one clinician to another can lead to significant morbidity and mortality. The Joint Commission was so concerned about handoffs that in 2017 it issued a sentinel event alert on the topic. “Handoffs are a safety…

Read More