The Business of Surgery After 5 years of planning, Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, opened its 18 new ORs in November 2006. A year later, physicians, staff, and the project team are happy with the outcome—a sign of success in the planning and design process. The new ORs and postanesthesia care…
On-time starts for the first case of the day, which had been running at 38%, shot up to 94% within 1 year. Physicians started to participate in decisions about the block schedule. And when capital budget time came, the physicians sat around the table and decided among themselves on spending…
When you buy a car, you can get a 5-year warranty. A refrigerator and washer and dryer come with a 1-year guarantee. But if a patient has heart bypass surgery and develops a sternal wound infection, not only is there no guarantee, but the patient's insurer will probably be charged…
Supply chain management doesn't normally conjure images of diamonds and clocks, but it did when Eugene Schneller, PhD, traced the trends in his keynote at the OR Business Management Conference held May 9 to 11 in Savannah, Georgia. Schneller, who is professor and director of health sector supply chain initiatives…
Removing the gallbladder through the vagina. Performing an appendectomy through the mouth. Doing an abdominal exploration through the rectum. It is a startling concept, but physicians are exploring new ways to perform surgery using the body's natural openings. Many questions remain, but researchers believe the approach holds promise of a…
What's the real value of your value analysis program? Most organizations say they are using value analysis teams to make purchasing decisions, particularly for products that involve physician preference and carry a high price tag. The financial impact is obvious, but value analysis also has intangible benefits because it can…
Hospitals vary widely in their policies on physician disclosure of financial interests. Many hospitals still do not have a policy. Some have policies that are quite specific, expecting physicians to check off the types of ties they may have. Academic medical centers are the most likely to have policies because…
Pennsylvania on Nov 14 became the first state to publicly report the actual number of patients who acquired infections at each of its 168 hospitals in 2005. "It's important to shed light on this important and costly issue," said Marc Volavka, the director of the council that released the report.…
