While many facilities were shuttered during the pandemic’s first wave, OMNI Surgery Center’s quick action allowed surgeons to use the facility’s four operating rooms for urgent cases when former New York Governor...

Bonnie Weinberg, MSN, RN, CNOR, is a soothsayer of simulation training. “She truly has a gift,” laughs Donna Lagasi, RN, MS, BSN, director of OR services at The Valley Hospital...

The eight OR Excellence Award winners profiled on the following pages are top-performing facilities that set the standard for high-quality, cost-effective care....

Efforts to ensure members of the LGBTQ+ community feel welcome at Methodist Hospital Metropolitan in San Antonio began five years ago in the maternity ward,...

Florence “SeeSee” Rigney, RN, figures it’s about time to slow down. The spry 96-year-old finally called it a career in July, retiring from MultiCare Tacoma (Wash.) General Hospital...

The opportunity to start a surgical facility from scratch is a rare one for any healthcare provider, so when Brandy Ginzinger, RN, was named director of surgical services at UCF Lake Nona Medical Center in Orlando, Fla.,...

Test your knowledge about potential hazards — and how to eliminate them.

if you’re still doing most of your coding, billing and collections in-house and rely on traditional spreadsheets to track metrics that assess your facility’s performance, I feel your pain. That was the situation when I became director...

Great ideas for your OR

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: The Power of Mentorship; Advising underrepresented providers creates a culture of inclusion.

Finding the right fit in a surgical video monitor is not like going to Best Buy to size up the latest TVs. It demands looking beyond the quality of the images or screen sizes. It’s also about the ability to connect cameras and other...

Outpatient surgery is often compared to aviation because both industries use checklists and crew resource management to avoid catastrophe. Airlines and surgery centers also rely on tight schedules to keep daily operations running,...

In the winter of 1984, Bruce Springsteen had recorded most of the songs that would appear on his iconic album Born in the U.S.A., but his manager said the record still lacked a clear hit single. Angry and frustrated, Bruce headed...

Surgical apps provide surgical teams with instant access to a wealth of useful information, points out Adela Cuel, RN, CNOR, an OR nurse in Kingston, Tenn. She says the following apps can be purchased for around $1,...

Avoid using medication containers with barcodes imprinted horizontally on rounded surfaces because they could result in scanning failures that compromise patient safety, warns the Institute of Safe Medication Practices (ISMP)....

A popular form of entertainment is a great way to boost your staff’s engagement in infection prevention training. “We decided to turn an entire education session into a zombie-themed escape room with an emphasis on...

At the beginning of the pandemic, Erin Donohue, BSN, RN, CCRN, and Allie Toczylowski, BSN, RN, CCRN, drew chalk artwork throughout the staff parking garages of the Einstein Healthcare Network in Philadelphia. They wrote...

Patients don’t always pay attention to discharge information while they’re recovering in post-op or remember what they were told after they leave the facility. The written instructions they receive are often mixed in...

Last year marked the 20th anniversary of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act, landmark legislation that was intended to eliminate the sharps injuries that continue...

Two years ago, our orthopedic surgery center launched a comprehensive total joints program. We built two ORs and added 150 instrument trays, but couldn’t expand the...