Putting a hold on the OR can lead to revenue losses no manager wants to see. At Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) in Allentown, Pennsylvania, OR holds were averaging 1,100 minutes per month. Jodi Koch, BSN, RN, director of perioperative services, and Kathleen Duckworth, RN, CPAN, their colleagues got holds…

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Improvements in first case on-time starts and turnover time at Lancaster General Hospital in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, attest to the success of using Lean strategies. Within an 8-month period, first-case on-time starts (FCOTS) jumped from 35% to 72%, and the monthly average overall turnover time (TOT) for a 7-month period was…

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Maintaining a strong relationship with the hospital CEO has always been important for an OR leader. In the coming year, good relations with the executive suite will be critical. Hospital executives are under greater pressure now than at any time in the last 30 years. Changes in the healthcare market…

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Each year, 2.5 million people in the US develop pressure ulcers, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Surgical patients are at especially high risk because of immobility during long procedures and anesthesia that blocks sensitivity to pain and pressure. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid estimates…

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Cancelled surgical procedures at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital (CRMH) in Roanoke, Virginia, are considered a success rather than a failure. “That’s because we cancel procedures for cause,” says Sandy Fogel, MD, FACS. Before 2010, many patients at CRMH were having surgery with undiagnosed, untreated medical problems, and postoperative 30-day mortality…

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OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business.   Better-performing surgery departments have always paid careful attention to the patient experience. Today, payment reform and market evolution are making patient satisfaction in an OR more important than ever. Patient…

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Trauma events occur every 5 minutes in the United States, and 30% of trauma patients die within 120 minutes of the event because of major organ injuries that lead to heavy blood loss. Better outcomes are achieved when care is initiated within 60 minutes, a time frame commonly referred to…

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OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business. Hospitals depend on surgical services to generate more than half their revenue and profit. Yet according to the latest OR Manager Salary/Career Survey, only one-third of hospitals employ an OR business…

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OR Business Performance is a series intended to help OR managers and directors improve the success of their business.   Data-rich dashboards are an effective way to communicate with surgeons and align them with OR goals, but many reporting strategies have not kept pace with changes in the surgery market.…

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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…

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