Outpatient Surgery Magazine – Page 2 – Kendal (Gapinski) Kloiber

Are Your Room Turnovers Up to Par?

You don’t want your OR idling for longer than it has to, but a quick room turnover shouldn’t come at the price of patient and staff safety. Outpatient Surgery surveyed 68 facility managers about their turnover practices. While half do it fast — 50% of respondents can ready a room for the next case in less than 15 minutes — not all do it as they should. Are you cutting the same corners as some of our survey respondents?

Is Your Sharps Safety Toolkit Complete?

They don’t substitute for good technique, but sharps safety products can lend a big hand in preventing injuries to your staff. Luckily, there are plenty of devices to prevent some of the most common OR injuries — suture sticks, needle nicks, scalpel slices — and ways to get staff on board.

How We Beat Pressure Ulcers

If your patients are developing pressure ulcers after surgery, read on for several strategies sure to cut your skin injury rate. A few years ago, when my hospital noticed an unacceptably high number of our patients were developing skin injuries 72 or so hours after surgery, we formed a Perioperative Services Skin Wellness Committee, which I chaired. Based on our experience, here are 7 things you can do to prevent pressure ulcers.

Are You Ready for Ebola?

In surgical facilities across the country, doctors and nurses are running drills to practice how to don and doff what they refer to as the Ebola spacesuit: double gloves (the first pair taped around the wrist), gowns impervious to liquid and viral penetration, booties, full face shields and surgical hoods that tuck neatly into the gowns. These dress rehearsals are in preparation for a horror show you pray the curtain never rises on: an infected patient showing up at your registration desk.

7 Ways to Use Smartphones in the OR

Smartphones and tablets are already widespread in the OR, but experts say there are more ways to use them than just as modern-day beepers. We asked around and found the 7 coolest ways to use mobile devices in your facility.