Our group of anesthesia providers came up with a patient care delivery model that involves MDs and CRNAs playing important roles in its overall success. The Collaborative Anesthesiology Team (CAT) capitalizes on...

As a child, I remember watching a newscast of Dr. Ben Carson operating to separate conjoined twins. The 1987 procedure garnered international attention and made Dr. Carson famous. I'll never forget how I felt...

By now you’ve probably heard about the plastic surgeon who decided to make an appearance in traffic court on Zoom … during surgery! The YouTube clip of the hearing immediately went viral. Have you seen it?...

After our state halted elective procedures last spring, returning to surgery and assuring our patients that the center functioned in the safest possible manner took a lot of planning — and no small amount of innovation...

We place ID and allergy bands on the ankles of cataract patients to improve our visualization of the vital information during safety time outs. Instead of pulling back covers and drapes to locate the bands on patients' wrists,...

If you're considering prefilled syringes for your facility, a little perspective goes a long way. It doesn't make sense to do an apples-to-apples cost comparison of prepackaged...

During appointments in our eye clinic, staff document the music preferences of patients in their charts. On the day of surgery, pre-op nurses refer to the charts — or ask patients about their favorite artists and songs...

If you're running a successful outpatient total joint program and want to increase case volumes, the future is bright. Last year, CMS began paying for total knees performed in...

Last December, I was part of a committee at AORN that organized a food drive to benefit low-income families in Southwest Denver. We partnered with the principal of a local middle school, who recorded...

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder affecting approximately one in four adults. It's also often undiagnosed — 90% of people with OSA don't know they have it — and undertreated. Failure to appropriately...

Rob Taylor, RN, BS, IP, was about halfway through his very first day on the job as the clinical director of the Constitution Surgery Center in Waterford, Conn., when he was...

We should all engage in dialogues with people who are different than we are — whether that's a different race, gender identity, cultural background or generation — to learn about perspectives other than our own. Listening sessions...

Everyone believes they have a general sense of "what" pain is. We've all stubbed our toes, slipped and fell, had horrible headaches or, worse still, stepped on Legos. Of course, this type of pain is incidental, unanticipated...

As you read this column, I will have been vaccinated against the dreaded virus we've been fighting for the past 12 months and started a new assignment as a travel nurse. I plan to retire at the end of the year, so this gig...

Discharge can be a confusing time for patients and their family members. The after-effects of anesthesia cause some amnesia, and the information and directives about post-op care are given when family members might be...

The pandemic has caused us all to re-examine our infection prevention strategies, including those related to personal protective equipment (PPE). Staff and physicians who properly wear PPE protect themselves...

Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols involve standardized care pathways that limit post-op pain with minimal use of opioids. Patients who enter the pathways...

Every January, managers from the OR, anesthesia and central sterile gather to review our hospitals' policies and procedures in order to make needed changes. Because representatives from many different disciplines...

We created a custom handoff form that's placed on top of each patient's chart to keep staff abreast of pertinent information that's not typically part of their medical record. In addition to noting case start and stop times...

As the president of a full-service anesthesia group, my number one goal has always been to protect my staff and our patients. That priority has certainly been put to the test...