Surgery/Specialties Negotiating with orthopedic vendors can be frustrating as OR leaders strive to balance competing agendas among companies, surgeons, and the hospital. Kimberley Murray, MS, RN, CNOR, administrator for the orthopedic and spine service line at St. Joseph’s Hospital (SJH) in Syracuse, New York, reduced frustration by adopting a program that…
Anew risk calculator allows surgeons to model and predict the risk of complications for individual patients after bariatric surgery, a new study reports. Available free online, the risk calculator will aid in surgical decision making and help patients better prepare for their surgery by understanding the true risks and benefits,…
Some 40% of patients scheduled for orthopedic surgery have low levels of vitamin D that may negatively affect outcomes, a new study finds. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium and is essential for optimal bone health and muscle function. Researchers from New York City's Hospital for Special Surgery retrospectively…
Editor's Note APRIL 2010 OR leaders are striving to make evidence-based decisions about new technology. OR Manager, Inc, and ECRI Institute have joined in a collaboration to bring quarterly supplements with summaries of the Institute's technology assessment reports to OR Manager readers. ECRI Institute is an independent nonprofit organization that…
Everything from washers to cars comes with a warranty, so why not health care? Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pennsylvania, introduced health care warranties with an innovative program called ProvenCare. Under the 90-day warranty, one cost covers the surgery and 90 days of follow-up treatment. Geisinger absorbs any additional costs…
Millions of Americans struggling with severe obesity may in the future have an incision-free option for weight loss. Surgeons are evaluating a procedure called TOGA—for transoral gastroplasty—as part of a multicenter clinical study. The procedure, which involves passing a stapler down a patient's throat and stapling the stomach from the…
What does it take for an OR to get to the top of the chart in physician satisfaction? Baptist Medical Center Beaches, a 146-bed hospital serving the coastal communities of Jacksonville, Florida, scored in the 99th percentile for physician measures in a Press Ganey survey, one of the highest scores…
Will there be enough general surgeons to meet the needs of an aging population? How will the supply affect hospital ORs? Findings from a new study suggest the nation could be facing a shortage. The number of general surgeons per 100,000 Americans has fallen by more than 25% over the…
After 5 years of planning, Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, opened its 18 new ORs in November 2006. A year later, physicians, staff, and the project team are happy with the outcome—a sign of success in the planning and design process. The new ORs and postanesthesia care…
Like a car's global positioning system (GPS), computer-assisted surgical navigation helps orthopedic surgeons get their bearings. A navigation system receives and transmits data about joint surfaces and placement of implants, displaying the information on a computer screen where the surgeon can view it. An image from the BrainLab VectorVision navigation…
