Meet the Speakers and Their Expertise

Speaking before a live audience, especially in a more intimate setting that OR Excellence provides, allows for an entirely different experience for the speakers and attendees. Not only do you have a chance to meet and know your audience, but to receive real-time feedback. This dynamic allows for questions, discussions and interpersonal interactions before, during and following the sessions. I very much look forward to reconnecting with old friends and meeting new ones at this year’s event in Orlando. Each attendee will hopefully gain valuable insight into the environment outside of their organization that they will find applicable and relevant to their own facility or position. My hope is that everyone will learn new information that they can take home and use to better position themselves and their teams to be successful in their future endeavors.

David Shapiro, MD, CASC
The State of the Ambulatory Surgery Industry
Thursday, Sept. 29 at 2:15 p.m

The biggest attraction of coming to Orlando is renewing old relationships that the pandemic has kept us from continuing to develop by keeping us from meeting in person, and continuing to foster these relationships with my professional colleagues from across the country. I’m also looking forward to making new friends — I believe the audience at OR Excellence consists of friends and soon-to-be-friends! The pandemic-to-endemic conversion has caused some normalization of life, but will we ever go back to before-COVID days? What have we learned over the past two-plus years? My goal is to lead a discussion into these thoughts at the gathering, where we share experiences and the learning that we have done individually as medical workers and as a nation. I want attendees to walk away with a sense of my optimism that we will handle the next pandemic differently.

Ashish Sinha, MD, PhD, DABA, MBA, FASA
Riverside University Health System
Preparing for the Next Pandemic
Friday, Sept. 30 at 9:00 a.m.

At my facility, we have immediate access to real-life data that has allowed us to identify gaps in care and respond more frequently and urgently, which is key to lowering infection rates. We also have access to real-time information about what our providers are doing on a daily basis. That provides a more complete picture of our infection control practices. There’s real power in changing and implementing protocols at the same time. I’m happy to share our methodologies and hope other facilities learn from our success.

Ahmed Al-Niaimi, MD, FACOG, FACS
University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health
Strike Quickly to Prevent SSIs
Friday, Sept. 30 at 10:15 a.m.

I always enjoy presenting to the attendees at OR Excellence. The group is eager to learn new strategies for dealing with the complex issues surgical leaders face today. I’ve polled many of my colleagues to ask what they are doing that sets them apart from others in retention and recruitment strategies. They’ve come up with some good ideas, which I’ll share during my presentation. I want everybody who sees me in Orlando to feel that they can overcome challenges related to today’s staffing shortages. We’re in a long-term situation, and we must be able to plan and cope with unforeseen circumstances. That’s not an easy thing to do. We cannot only react; we need to be prepared.

Ann Geier, MS, RN, CNOR, CASC
Ambulatory Healthcare Strategies
Strategies to Solve the Staffing Shortage
Friday, Sept. 30 at 11:15 a.m.

I hope to convince attendees that they need to challenge conventional wisdom. The ‘We’ve always done it this way’ mentality doesn’t work anymore. They must be willing to do the work and try new things. They’re also at a severe disadvantage if they don’t have a dedicated staff member in charge of constantly ensuring needed supplies are on hand. They need to make sure that person understands the critical importance of the job. Finally, vendors aren’t the enemy. If surgical leaders communicate and listen to industry reps, and partner with good ones, they can gain access to quality products that benefit their facility.

Thomas W. Durick, MD
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
Supply Shortages and What You Can Do About It
Friday, Sept. 30 at 2:30 p.m.

I’m looking forward to applying my experience from the entertainment, hospitality and financial industries to improving the healthcare experience for patients and providers. My focus will be on using technology, digital platforms and data to simplify and streamline patient interactions and to improve operational efficiencies. Digital transformation isn’t about technology, but rather it’s driven by a singular focus on the patient experience.

Tony Ambrozie, MBA
Baptist Health South Florida
Healthcare’s Digital Transformation 
Friday, Sept. 30 at 3:30 p.m.

On top of learning, networking and enjoying all that OR Excellence has to offer, I’m hoping my presentation will help facility leaders learn about what productive communication between the sterile processing department (SPD) and the OR looks like in action. Collaboration between both areas — whether it’s the SPD explaining why they need more time to properly reprocess instruments or the OR passing along information on specific instrument needs — is a critical part of any high-functioning facility. The two departments must find ways to communicate as efficiently as possible in order to deliver high-quality and safe patient care. Attendees should walk away from this presentation with some practical tips on how to create more meaningful interactions between the SPD and the OR staff as well as some proven ways to promote healthy relationships between the two groups.

Jig Patel, ST, CRCST, CHL, CIS, CER
UCLA Health
The Secrets to Improved Instrument Care
Saturday, Oct. 1 at 9:00 a.m.

I want to teach facility leaders about conducting effective workplace investigations, and my presentation will cover everything from preparing for an investigation of your facility’s protocols and practices to holding witness interviews to concluding and memorializing the entire event. I want all attendees to understand that the way in which they handle an investigation can make or break a malpractice case. Conducting an effective investigation can be the key that saves a facility from a drawn-out and costly lawsuit. I’m also looking forward to meeting new people and learning how I can be of service to them as they navigate the complex legal landmines of running a surgical facility in today’s litigious climate.

Casey Duhart, BS, M.Ed., JD
Acadia Healthcare
Navigating Employment Law Landmines
Saturday, Oct. 1 at 10:15 a.m.