Better data coupled with an at-risk salary model for anesthesiologists have helped one academic medical center to improve its performance for on-time starts and turnover time between cases. The hospital’s surgical volume was growing, and it had to make the most of its OR time. Yet a lot of the…

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A column on managing the OR revenue cycle   How to charge for surgical services is a frequent source of questions from OR directors and business managers. In this column, Keith Siddel, MBA, answers frequent questions about charging. He is an officer with Health Revenue Assurance Associates (HRRA), Plantation, Florida.…

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Updated infection control practices from the American Society of Anesthesiologists draw on data and national guidelines to inform anesthesia providers of practices shown to alter the incident of health care-associated infections. The recommendations also focus on prevention of occupational transmission of infection in anesthesiologists. The document has not been reviewed…

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Is there a shortage of anesthesia providers now? Does the nation face a shortage in the future? The answer for the current labor supply is: It depends on your area and whether your facility is urban or rural. The anesthesia labor supply and practice patterns vary dramatically, a new indepth…

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The McSleepy system thinks like an anesthesiologist. It may be available commercially in about five years. Surgeons at McGill University in Montreal recently performed the world's first totally automated administration of anesthesia. The new system, nicknamed McSleepy, automatically administers drugs for general anesthesia and monitors their effects. "Think of McSleepy…

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The surgeons want more OR rooms running later in the day and even on weekends. With reimbursement pressures, they say they need to spend more time in their offices seeing patients. But who's going to provide the anesthesia coverage for these extended hours? Anesthesia providers say it isn't financially feasible.…

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