A new resource has emerged to help ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) manage the proliferating requirements they face in achieving and demonstrating performance. It is the quality council. “Another meeting?” one might ask. “Another task that does not include hands-on patient care?” Actually, a well-run quality council can save time, ensure…

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A new report card on surgery information systems is out, the first in 3 years. The report from KLAS Enterprises reviews the 8 top surgery software systems. KLAS is an independent firm that compiles user ratings of health care software. The new report, titled Surgery Management 2010: In Pursuit of…

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With tighter budgets and long lists of technology requests, organizations need a fair and systematic way to set priorities. At Virginia Mason Medical Center (VMMC) in Seattle, where Lean manufacturing principles are part of the culture, it was natural to apply Lean to the review of new surgical supplies and…

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Preoperative baths or showers to prevent surgical infections have played to mixed reviews. Enthusiasm was dampened after a systematic Cochrane review in 2006, updated in 2009, examined 7 trials and found no clear evidence of a benefit for bathing or showering with chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) over a placebo. Preop bathing…

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New data from Minnesota hospitals offers more insight into preventing pressure ulcers during long surgical procedures. Data collected through the state’s adverse event reporting system in 2009 found 13% of the 122 Stage 3, Stage 4, and unstageable pressure ulcers reported were related to long surgical procedures. Attention to this…

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Strong evidence from a new 6-hospital study could lead many ORs to change their traditional practice for surgical skin preparation. In the first prospective, randomized study to compare the effect of 2 skin prep agents on the incidence of surgical site infections (SSIs) after clean-contaminated surgery, a chlorhexidine (CHG)-alcohol product…

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Under the Joint Commission’s National Patient Safety Goal 07.05.01 on preventing surgical site infections (SSIs), organizations are required to measure their SSI rates. They also need to provide process and outcome measures, such as SSI rates, to key stakeholders; for example, surgeons and senior administrators. Perioperative nurses play an important…

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How does your sterile processing department (SPD) know it's on track? At MedCentral Health System, based in Mansfield, Ohio, managers and staff track performance with a color-coded scorecard. The scorecard is built around 5 pillars, which reflect the health system's mission: quality customer service innovation teamwork finance. The pillars are…

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Strong leadership, meticulous auditing, and close followup are some factors that have kept Baptist Hospital of Miami, Florida, in the top 10% of performers in the Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration. The demonstration, conducted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Premier, pays hospitals a little more for meeting…

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More than ever, OR leaders and physicians need to be on the same page. Intense collaboration is needed to make progress on safety and quality initiatives as well as cost management. Peggy Naas, RN, MD, MBA Yet physicians have competition for their time and loyalty. They may have an interest…

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