Surgeons undergo years of intense training to learn how to return patients to good health, yet receive little instruction on how to maintain their own well-being. After long...

My hospital's sterile processing department is a constant buzz of activity. We manage 2,000 instrument sets and 47 techs work around the clock to reprocess more than 300 trays — from basic laparoscopy equipment to complex orthopedic instrumentation...

The pandemic has increased the importance of properly disinfecting ORs between cases, and facilities have maintained safe spaces for surgery with rigorous manual...

Cataract surgery used to be a straightforward procedure. In a matter of minutes, surgeons eliminated a patient's blurred or clouded vision by replacing the eye's natural...

When post-op infections occurred among patients who underwent colon and gynecology procedures at University of Wisconsin (UW) Health, clinical leaders...

Video laryngoscopes have increased in use during the pandemic in order to better protect anesthesia providers from potentially aerosolized COVID-19 during intubations. Before that, they were frequently employed...

Exorbitant healthcare costs in America are a driving force in our troubled economy. Attempts to save money in this arena by public officials usually involve cutting services to Medicare recipients. I think there's...

Great ideas for your OR

At my former hospital, a patient expressed concern about sticker residue on the outside of the plastic binder that held their paper chart and wondered aloud about the overall cleanliness of the facility. A nurse quickly attempted...

I love to color, and have taken up the hobby to relieve stress. I'm also a tactile and kinesthetic learner — someone who needs movement and hands-on training while learning. Research shows coloring reduces anxiety...

If you're running a successful outpatient total joint program and want to increase case volumes, the future is bright. Last year, CMS began paying for total knees performed in...

During appointments in our eye clinic, staff document the music preferences of patients in their charts. On the day of surgery, pre-op nurses refer to the charts — or ask patients about their favorite artists and songs...

Last December, I was part of a committee at AORN that organized a food drive to benefit low-income families in Southwest Denver. We partnered with the principal of a local middle school, who recorded...

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder affecting approximately one in four adults. It's also often undiagnosed — 90% of people with OSA don't know they have it — and undertreated. Failure to appropriately...

As a child, I remember watching a newscast of Dr. Ben Carson operating to separate conjoined twins. The 1987 procedure garnered international attention and made Dr. Carson famous. I'll never forget how I felt...

Our group of anesthesia providers came up with a patient care delivery model that involves MDs and CRNAs playing important roles in its overall success. The Collaborative Anesthesiology Team (CAT) capitalizes on...

WIn the midst of the pandemic, we looked for a way to safely maximize the number of staff members who could hang out together during breaks and lunch. We found portable sneeze guards on Amazon — they cost less...

If you're considering prefilled syringes for your facility, a little perspective goes a long way. It doesn't make sense to do an apples-to-apples cost comparison of prepackaged...

We place ID and allergy bands on the ankles of cataract patients to improve our visualization of the vital information during safety time outs. Instead of pulling back covers and drapes to locate the bands on patients' wrists,...

By now you’ve probably heard about the plastic surgeon who decided to make an appearance in traffic court on Zoom … during surgery! The YouTube clip of the hearing immediately went viral. Have you seen it?...