The Business of Surgery Clinical and social characteristics not included in Medicare’s current risk-adjustment methods explained much of the difference in readmission risk between patients admitted to hospitals with higher versus lower readmission rates, a study finds. The Medicare Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program penalizes hospitals with higher than expected 30-day readmission rates by reducing…
The role of business manager continues to grow in teaching, but not community, hospitals, according to the 2015 OR Manager Salary/Career Survey. Fewer than a third (29%) of OR leaders report that their hospital has a business manager, and 70% of those managers work in teaching hospitals. Other highlights from…
The interactive hybrid OR exhibit that debuted at the 2014 OR Manager Conference will once again be showcased in 2015. The exhibit, featuring an extensive array of products and equipment representing more than 10 companies, will be on display during the annual OR Manager Conference, October 7-9, at the Gaylord…
Perioperative services is the key driver of a hospital’s performance. More than 68% of better performing hospitals’ revenue comes from perioperative services, and 60% of their margin is derived from the OR, according to Alecia Torrance, MBA, BS, RN, CNOR, senior vice president of clinical operations, Surgical Directions, Chicago. One…
Perhaps no other departments in a hospital work as closely together as the OR and the sterile processing department, yet friction isn’t uncommon as both areas strive to meet service demands. Although the relationship between the two is unlikely to ever be free of tension, leaders of both departments increasingly…
Problems such as frequently running out of critical items, expired inventory, and secret stockpiling in the OR have become increasingly burdensome for surgeons, nursing staff, and hospital administration across the country. Wasteful supply chain spending marginalizes patient care and drives OR expenses out of control. “When the facility’s difficulties in…
As payment models move from fee-for-service to value-based care, hospitals and healthcare systems are trying to reduce spending by 20% to 30% to maintain their budgets. Supply costs are usually the second largest expense after labor, and industry analysts predict they will take the top slot by 2020. In 2013,…
In the past, most hospitals automatically sought accreditation from the Joint Commission, but recent years have brought new players to the field, prompting hospital administrators to rethink that strategy. One relatively new player is DNV GL-Healthcare (DNV GL). Since achieving deeming authority from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services…
There is no OR nurse university. Nurses can’t go away to college, pay tuition, and learn to be a perioperative nurse. “Faced with a staffing shortfall, how are we going to deal with this? How are they going to learn and acquire skills needed to work in the OR?” These…
Analytics is a buzzword in today’s healthcare world, but behind the buzz is a very real tool. If used appropriately, analytics can help OR managers achieve improvements in stubborn problems such as turnover time. But OR leaders must first understand analytics principles before applying them in their management practice. Analytics…
