Coming up with a discreet way to identify patients who have bloodborne pathogens such as HIV or hepatitis B — infectious diseases that pose risks to staff members — simultaneously maintains patient dignity...

Medicare requires surgical facilities to have an emergency plan in place for rare and dire events that could take place in a healthcare setting. Of course, even the most comprehensive emergency plan won’t help if...

I’m fully committed to integrating the practice of public health into surgery and tapped into my passion for health equity to help launch the Center for Surgical Health (CSH) at Penn Medicine, a program that focuses on improving...

Administrative staff can suffer from shoulder, back and neck strain caused by cradling phones between their ears and shoulders for hours on end, so Marisa Ynchausti, RN, BSN, clinical nurse manager at National Ambulatory...

The administration at Heartland Surgery Center in Kearney, Neb., doesn’t wait around for standard holidays to let loose and have fun. “We celebrated national coffee day and had a local coffee shop deliver drinks,” says...

Patient optimization is a nebulous concept that can mean vastly different things to different providers. Joyce Wahr, MD, FAHA, believes the concept involves doing...

Anesthesia providers who dial back the anesthetic gases could save your facility money and go greener. The idea behind low-flow anesthesia is quite simple: Adjusting flows of inhalational agents to a “just right” level of...

Charles E. Miller, MD, FACOG, had already sold his surgical team on the 4K video platform he wanted for performing same-day minimally invasive gynecologic surgeries....

Cataract surgery is usually performed quickly and typically without incident. It’s the recoveries that could prove problematic. Patients must administer a staggering number...

Hardworking professionals in ORs and sterile processing departments should respect each other’s efforts, but consternation between the two groups is often more common...

The patient at John Muir Hospital was extremely anxious while waiting for her surgery to start and had no loved ones present to support her, which the pre-op nursing staff...

Katie Yarber, RN, BSN, says delivering babies at Houston Methodist Hospital during the height of last year’s COVID-19 restrictions has been the highlight of her career. “It was...

My young daughter wakes up in mid-sentence. Each morning, she stands next to me as I pack her lunch and talks about pinecones and princesses and Play-Doh. Mmm, hmm. Wow. Oh really?

BD has introduced the first ready-to-use aqueous povidone-iodine surgical wound irrigation solution. The Surgiphor Sterile Wound Irrigation System comes sterile, pre-labeled, pre-mixed and ready for one-time use....

Rampant wildfires, historic flooding, destructive hurricanes and record-setting heat waves have made this year one for the record books. And while the weather outside is becoming increasingly erratic and impossible...

Patient positioning aids range from simple gel pads to elaborate table attachments. However, there are certain common denominators you should consider when evaluating these vital products that prevent...

Mr. Smith has been sitting in his hospital gown on a cold stretcher waiting to be brought back for surgery. The 62-year-old glances at the clock on the wall, which reminds him that he has been waiting alone, thanks to the pandemic...

I’m five years removed from training to become a critical care surgeon. It was during my medical school surgical rotation that I became fully aware of the need for a supportive network for LGBTQ+ surgeons. The chief resident...

Transferring patients between stretchers and surgical tables presents plenty of challenges for members of the surgical team. Nurses and support staff are at risk of suffering muscular injuries caused by lifting...

If you want your staff to make going green a part of their day-to-day mindset, the process must be as simple and as convenient as possible. Placing recycling containers within an arm’s reach of wherever they work...