High labor expenses? Better staffing and scheduling can cut costs
OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business. The OR labor budget usually takes a back seat to supplies and equipment. But labor costs can still create significant spending problems. Many hospital surgery departments use nursing full-time equivalents…
Turnover rates plummet with Patient Care Intern training program
Nurse turnover is a problem that affects the performance and profitability of every health care organization. The cost of a nurse leaving a facility is roughly twice that nurse’s annual salary while a replacement is sought and orientation is completed. In addition, patient care may be compromised because the temporary…
Careful screening and scrutiny needed to select ambulatory surgery patients
The patient, an elderly woman, arrived at Red Rocks Surgery Center in Golden, Colorado, for an ophthalmology procedure. A paraplegic, she was using a scooter chair. Administrator Jane Klinglesmith, BS, RN, CNOR, watched her checking in at the admissions desk and noticed she was on dialysis. As she approached, Klinglesmith…
Medicare may drop bariatric surgery center certification requirement
Supporters of the bariatric surgery facility certification established in 2006 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are anxiously awaiting the agency’s final ruling on whether to reverse that decision. CMS issued a proposed decision memo in June and is expected to make its final ruling by the…
Words of wisdom: OR leaders offer tips for new managers
Surgical services is endowed with a large number of senior nurse leaders. The average age of perioperative nursing managers and directors is 55, and on average, they have been in nursing 30.5 years, according to the 2012 OR Manager Salary/Career Survey. Nearly half plan to retire by 2020. As ORs…
Three-part strategy suggested to improve patient throughput
Efficient throughput—difficult to achieve, yet essential to long-term financial success—is a Holy Grail for OR nurse leaders, who spend much time and energy seeking it. Given all the demands of their role, how can leaders best use their time to gain the most benefit from throughput initiatives? One method is…
Editorial
Data on inpatient and outpatient hospital charges released in May and June by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have fueled the fire started in March with Steven Brill’s Time magazine cover story, “Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us.” Brill cited sometimes staggering amounts charged for…
Surviving a disaster: Nurses recall Moore's fierce tornado
It had been a busy morning in the OR at Moore Medical Center in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20. By 3 pm, the surgery patients had left the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) and gone home. PACU nurses Debra Breshears, RN, and Barbra Barrow, RN, were getting ready to leave when…
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- C-sections linked to longer recovery, higher pain, sleep problems for new mothers
- AI model grades nursing procedures with near-human precision
- Study: Hospitals can safely cut low-value preop tests before routine surgeries
- New studies highlight opportunities to improve pediatric anesthesia safety, comfort
- Social and behavioral factors emerging as key predictors of recovery quality after surgery
- Hospitals being squeezed: Anesthesia workforce gaps, payer cuts threaten surgery access
- CDC layoffs cripple national injury and overdose tracking, leaving prevention efforts in doubt
- The Joint Commission makes nurse staffing a national performance goal for 2026
- Telehealth in limbo: Providers split on continuing Medicare services during shutdown
- States take aim at outpatient facility fees driving higher commercial health costs
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