OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 10; October 2011 More than 60% of uniforms worn by physicians and nurses tested positive for potentially pathogenic bacteria, including drug-resistant organisms, in a new study from Israel. The team of researchers collected swab samples from 3 parts of the uniforms of 75 RNs and…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 10; October 2011 Stiff economic headwinds are challenging ambulatory surgery centers (ASC). Among them are stubbornly high unemployment, higher copays and deductibles, and fewer independent physicians. After strong growth, the number of new ASCs opening is nearly zero for 2011. Brian Mathis, vice president of…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 10; October 2011 Twenty-one years ago, when we launched the OR Manager Salary/Career Survey, one of our goals was to ask core questions every year so we could track trends. In some areas, the contrast between then and now is striking. In others, we’ve seen…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 10; October 2011 What might be most effective in preventing wrong surgery? A new analysis from Pennsylvania identifies best practice principles that might have prevented 431 wrong procedures reported in the state since 2004. The 21 principles were published in 2009 by the Pennsylvania Patient…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 10; October 2011 What might be most effective in preventing wrong surgery? A new analysis from Pennsylvania identifies best practice principles that might have prevented 431 wrong procedures reported in the state since 2004. The 21 principles were published in 2009 by the Pennsylvania Patient…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 9; September 2011 The government’s long-awaited plan for quality reporting by ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) was issued July 1, 2011. If the proposal is finalized later this fall, the time-line could be short. ASCs might need to have quality-reporting systems in place as early as…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 9; September 2011 A circulating nurse reports she called 3 times, asking a technical support assistant to bring a piece of equipment to the OR, but the equipment never arrived. Later, it’s learned the assistant didn’t know what the equipment was and was afraid to…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 9; September 2011 The Food and Drug Administration should replace its 35-year-old 510(k) process for medical devices, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) urges in a new report. The IOM finds the process is flawed as a means to screen devices for safety and efficacy before…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 9; September 2011 Have you faced any of these situations? You receive loaner instruments for a case the same morning the case is scheduled. You receive loaner instruments without cleaning/sterilization instructions for use (IFU). You receive loaner sets you have never seen before. Neither the…

Read More

OR Manager; Vol. 27 No. 9; September 2011 Hiring RN new graduates for the OR was almost unheard of 15 years ago. Now 74% of OR directors and managers in the 2011 OR Manager Salary/Career Survey say they accept new grads and RNs without OR experience. To help ease the…

Read More