Editor's Note As hospital systems seeing a significant jump in outpatient care, they are also seeing a rise in patient acuity across inpatient care. This increased patient acuity for inpatient care is driving changes to care models across both settings, an October 27 article in Becker’s Clinical Leadership reports. Clinical…

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Editor's Note Improving first case on-time starts (FCOTS) in an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) can improve overall efficiency. When the first case of the day starts on-time, it leads to a cascading effect that can prevent cancellations, improve patient satisfaction, and reduce stress for perioperative staff. It can also make…

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Editor's Note Obesity is a key driver of earlier total hip arthroplasty (THA) and elevated perioperative risk, according to findings published October 29 in Surgeries. While THA is a well-known intervention for older adults with end-stage hip osteoarthritis, the researchers reported a link between an increase in obesity and the…

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Editor's Note The incidence of surgical patients being discharged against medical advice is increasing, leading to a subsequent rise in postoperative complications and readmissions, according to new published research. The investigators evaluated trends, risk factors, and postoperative outcomes among surgical patients who were discharged against medical advice and their findings…

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Editor's note A liberal blood transfusion strategy after major vascular or general surgery for patients at high risk of a cardiac event did not reduce 90-day death or major ischemic outcome rates compared with a restrictive strategy, according to results from the Transfusion Trigger after Operations in High Cardiac Risk…

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Editor's Note Surgical care can be influenced if a patient has high blood pressure, including for preoperative assessment, intraoperative monitoring and to prevent postoperative complications such as heart and kidney injury, stroke, and death. An overview of updated blood pressure guidance updates to the 2017 Blood Pressure Guidelines released by…

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Editor's note Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) guidelines continue to evolve for specific procedures with the goal to optimize patient recovery and surgical outcome. There is a recognized need for consensus on ERAS recommendations specific to surgery for moderate to severe degenerative cervical myelopathy (DMC)—progressive compression of the spinal cord…

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It is no long best practice to deliver education via a traditional lecture with PowerPoint slides or an unimaginative online learning module. “These techniques are boring and not effective,” says Beverly Kirchner, MSN, BSN, RN, CNOR(E), CASC, chief compliance officer for SurgeryDirect, LLC. “Staff just listen or read the information,…

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Editor's Note Healthcare systems are finding that ambient AI built for doctors does not automatically translate to nursing care, HealthLeaders November 4 reports. However, Mercy for instance is piloting Microsoft’s Dragon Copilot AI for nursing and discovering that the nurse-patient encounter requires tailored design and training to capture accurate, useful…

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Editor's Note MD Anderson is hardwiring career mobility so staff can see, test, and pursue growth without leaving the division. According to this session’s panel—including Abigail Caudle, MD, MHCM, FACS, vice president of procedural and therapeutic medical operations; Robert Ghafar, MBA, RTT, vice president of procedural and therapeutic operations; and…

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