SUPPLY SOLUTION Keep specialized instruments you'll need on occasion peel-packed in a file box.

There When You Need Them
Keep Specialized Instruments Filed Nearby

Some instruments are used in practically every cataract case. Others only play a part in certain unexpected situations. You don't keep those tools in your surgeons' standard cataract trays: They'd often go unused, and the continual reprocessing would subject them to unnecessary wear and tear. But when you need them, you need them now, and a run to the supply room wastes valuable time. That's why we keep specialized lens inserters, Osher Malyugin ring manipulators, extra I/A tips, drape scissors, small parts kits and other occasional essentials peel-packed and filed in a metal mesh box we picked up at an office supply store. We index which instruments are in the box with plastic binder dividers. Then, when we need these things, they're right behind the glass door of the OR cabinet, sterile until opened and ready to go. Writing the number of the OR they came from on the peel-pack after they're reprocessed makes sure they're returned to the file box after they're used.

Mariann Pomaville, RN
Lakeshore Eye Surgery Center
St. Clair Shores, Mich.
[email protected]