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GRAND PRIZE
Best Tip for Online Pre-Admission
No forms to fill out or phone calls to answer for the patients at the multi-specialty Elmhurst (Ill.) Outpatient Surgery Center. The entire pre-admission process — both the pre-admission medical history and the night-before-surgery confirmation call — is automated. Hard to say who loves it more, patients or staff, says Tina Mentz, Elmhurst's executive director, so we'll settle for both.
TEXT ALERTAutomated text messaging guides patients to and through their scheduled surgeries.At first, Elmhurst's nurses recorded patient responses in the online pre-admission tool, which meant there was still a phone call to make and typing instead of handwriting. Now, however, the ASC has rolled the online service out to patients. Within the first 30 days, Elmhurst had a 10% utilization rate by the patients, says Ms. Mentz. "The patients love this service and our nurses do, too. It significantly reduces the pre-admission assessment call," she says.
That's not all. Elmhurst uses a text reminder service that prompts patients to complete their medical histories online before their procedures and sends reminders regarding their arrival time, NPO procedures and special preparation procedures. For example, colonoscopy patients receive a text detailing the prep instructions.
"Utilization of our online medical history tool has been great," says Ms. Mentz. "After 1 month, we're still evaluating the effect on NPO/prep compliance and arrival times. There has also been savings in terms of time spent making confirmation calls. Patients who receive the text messages love it."
GRAND PRIZE
Best Tip for Online Pre-Admission - continued
Elmhurst didn't stop there. The ASC also implemented a fast-track registration process to streamline the registration process for repeat patients to the surgery center, defined as patients who had had a procedure at the ASC within the previous 30 days. These are mostly cataract surgery and pain injection patients. Those patients don't have to complete another online patient history, re-verify their insurance or listen to another HIPAA talk. "All they do is sign a release of benefits form and then they can go right back," says Ms. Mentz. "This has further reduced our registration time significantly and allowed a faster admission to pre-op."
For a 6-OR, 2-procedure-room facility like Elmhurst that performs more than 8,000 surgeries annually, automating the pre-admission process has been a tremendous timesaver. Some patients, however, are more tech-savvy than others, and some aren't as comfortable filling out their information online.
To simplify the process for all of your patients, Angela Laux, BSN, MSOLQ, administrator of Bellin Orthopedic Surgery Center in Green Bay, Wisc., suggests that you provide them with an instructional brochure during their pre-op visit. The brochure should include step-by-step instructions for completing the form, which includes mostly checkboxes, to save time and extra typing.
Bellin Orthopedic instructs patients to log on to its website at least 1 week before surgery, click on the box in the top right corner to register their information, and follow the remaining directions on the screen.
"We also instruct patients that aren't comfortable filling out the online form to contact an RN to share the necessary information," says Ms. Laux, who adds that the information staff collect from simple yes-or-no questions also helps the surgical staff better prepare for procedures and prevents cancellations as well. "For example, if a patient notes she sometimes has difficulty walking up a flight of stairs, we can anticipate potential respiratory problems and prepare accordingly."
Best Post-Op Meal
It's tea and toast for patients at the Columbus (Ohio) Institute of Plastic Surgery. Mmm, chicken noodle soup for patients at the Fleming Island (Fla.) Surgery Center. Patients at the Delray Beach (Fla.) Surgery Center get to pick from Glucerna or Nutri-Grain snack bars with special coffees, hot chocolate and an assortment of teas. The St. Louis Women's Surgery Center gives colonoscopy patients a voucher for a free meal at a local grill after the procedure. The voucher covers the meal costs for the patient and the patient's representative. "Our patients love this because they haven't had any solid food for 24 hours or more," says Ann Roberts, RN, clinical nurse manager at the Ballwin, Mo., facility.
Best Tip for Patient Warming
Give all patients a warm blanket as soon as they've changed into a surgical gown in pre-op and keep the pre-op area's ambient temperature set on high, says Barbara Getlan, RN, BSN, administrator and director of nursing at the Bellona Surgery Center in Towson, Md. "Our thermostat is usually set to about 80 ?F, and patients can adjust it from there." Apply forced-air warming to patients in the OR and constantly monitor their temperatures during surgery. In the PACU, give them additional warmed blankets to supplement the heat of the forced-air unit, says Ms. Getlan.
Best Facebook Page
Tampa Bay Specialty Surgery Center's Facebook page lets patients see the layout of the center, take a virtual tour and see pictures of they people they'll meet at the surgery center, says Laura Smith, RN, LHRM, administrator of the Pinellas Park, Fla., facility.
GiVING THANKS Staff at Cityview Surgery Center make charitable donations to honor David Nethery, MD (center).
Best Community Service
Each year around the holidays, have your staff pick a charitable organization and donate a dollar amount in the name of an employee or physician who goes above and beyond for the good of your center. Employees at Cityview Surgery Center in Fort Worth, Texas, make charitable donations on behalf of Medical Director David Nethery, MD, who matches the dollar amount collected amongst the staff. In the past, the center has cut checks to the Make a Wish Foundation and local food banks. Donations are strictly voluntary and any amount — big or small — is gladly accepted. "I'm very proud of our commitment to this yearly service project," says Jane Bell, RN, the center's nurse manager. "The donations are also our way of thanking Dr. Nethery for the many wonderful things he does for our facility and staff throughout the year."
The staff at the Cleveland Eye and Laser Surgery Center in Fairview Park, Ohio, adopted a local family with 3 small children. The family needed clothes, socks, bed sheets, jackets and toys for the children. "The staff and surgeons were so generous, we were able to give the family a great Christmas," says administrator Jeannine Arcuri, BSN. "A group of surgeons bought the girls a Barbie house. The parents cried when they saw the generosity of my staff."
TUNING IN Matt Ullman, SPD (left), and Brandon Luskin, MD, press play.
Best Song Played in the OR
Taste is subjective. OR playlists are eclectic (we know of an ortho doc who has the 14-minute version of "Rapper's Delight" cued up in each room as he flips between them). And we're not Rolling Stone magazine, telling you what you should be listening to. But Carol Cappella, RN, MSN, CNOR, clinical director at Delray Beach (Fla.) Surgery Center, makes a convincing argument that "Love the One You're With" by Stephen Stills is the best song you can play during surgery. "It's an ideal song," she says. "In the OR, the whole focus is on making sure the patient is safe. And the only way to do that is to make sure everybody is happy." It's a high-pressure environment, sure, and sometimes co-workers can be difficult. But for the time being, you've got a higher purpose. "No matter what, you can all get through this. And when you do, it's all good," she says.
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