Last fall, Saint Francis Health System in Tulsa, Okla., made a big push to improve point-of-use instrument cleaning by posting a new regimen for staff to follow...

If your surgeons have too few or too many of the instruments and supplies they need for a case, your preference cards are inaccurate and outdated. It's too few if your...

Surgeons come in all shapes, sizes and sexes with individual ergonomic needs. Those instruments designed for the burly 6-foot-6 surgeon who played middle linebacker...

The surgeon had signed the patient's left side and was about to begin surgery, but something didn't feel right to the medical student in the room. "Can we check...

We hang an image of the American flag on the OR door to alert the surgical team that the patient is a combat veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder...

It sounds almost too good to be true: a credit card without interest for medical expenses. But if you're losing out on potential patients who can't afford skyrocketing...

My orthopedic patients are often groggy from the effects of anesthesia when I meet with them minutes after surgery to let them know how the procedure went and what...

It’s one thing to log and track laboratory specimens and post their results in the patient’s chart. But that doesn’t confirm that the ordering healthcare provider read...

Children at Roxana Cannon Arsht Surgicenter in Wilmington, Del., were so stressed saying goodbye to their parents before heading to the operating room for dental...

Certain procedures cause anxiety for patients. That’s especially true at my facility, where we’re treating children. When we received a $13,000 grant for 3 virtual reality...

When Outpatient Surgery Magazine invited me to walk the exhibit hall at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) Annual Meeting in San Diego,...

Until they get cited in an inspection, most sterile processing departments are forced to cut corners and take shortcuts. My job is to arrive on the scene in advance of...

Millennials are lazy, entitled narcissists. Baby Boomers are tech-illiterate dinosaurs too set in their ways to learn anything new. These tired stereotypes are not only patently...

You might consider pressure injuries "out of sight, out of mind," or "not our problem." After all, you have no way of knowing you sent a patient home with a bed...

Besides the occasional complaint about incomplete sets or late-arriving trays, how can an OR manager grade the sterile processing department’s performance? We’ve got you...

Your everyday focus is to improve patients’ lives through superior care while providing an experience that’s as pleasant and safe as possible. But what about engaging...

What do you see in this photograph: surgical smoke, right? This photo accompanied an article in last month’s issue about mandatory smoke evacuation legislation....

We've all seen patients with post-op delirium. They're disoriented and confused immediately after surgery. They have trouble focusing and are unable to participate...

What type of immune response does your surgical mesh elicit in patients? That's a question you and your surgeons should ask, says Stephen F. Badylak, DVM, MD,...

There are nurses, and then there are operating room nurses, those masked crusaders infused with a special blend of smarts, savvy and strength to stand up for patients...