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Georgia hospital hit by F3 tornado — post-op patients, others evacuated

Many outpatient surgery managers are prepared, at least to some extent, to respond to a disaster in their communities, but what do you do when your facility is the disaster?

What will you do if disaster hits your ORs?

When two outpatient surgery departments faced disaster in the past year, they learned just how important it is to participate in disaster drills and to come together as a team when a crisis hits.

Intranet keeps staff updated on news, policies

Using the Internet to promote communications between physician offices and outpatient surgery programs is a good way to connect with your surgeons, but have you considered using an intranet to communicate with employees?

CMS revises guidelines on informed consent

While we need to budget for new equipment in the surgical suites, we don't necessarily need to spend it. With already escalating costs for energy and labor, any area where we can save money or "capital" is wise planning.

Same-Day Surgery Manager: Capital equipment process made simple

While we need to budget for new equipment in the surgical suites, we don't necessarily need to spend it. With already escalating costs for energy and labor, any area where we can save money or "capital" is wise planning.

From fighter pilots to lap procedures

Three-dimensional technology that the military created to help fighter pilots in air combat is now being used by outpatient surgeons to perform complex laparoscopic cases, and at about one-tenth the price of the da Vinci Surgical robotic system (Intuitive Surgical, Santa Monica, CA).

Should you buy surgeons a PlayStation 3?

Surgeons who are skilled at video games also are more skilled at laparoscopic surgery, according to a just-released study published in the February issue of Archives of Surgery.

Minnesota lists 24 outpatient adverse events

The Minnesota Department of Health has released its third annual report, Adverse Health Events in Minnesota. The report, containing events from a 12-month period starting October 2005, showed 154 total adverse events.

New resource lists ASCs by district

The American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers (AAASC) has developed a list of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) by states and by congressional districts.

Cuts proposed for ASCs, hospitals

In President Bush' proposed budget, the inflation increase for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) and hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) has been decreased by 0.065 percentage points starting in 2010 for surgery centers and 2008 for HOPDs.

Lenses to correct astigmatism allowed

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has agreed to allow astigmatism- correcting lenses as an option for Medicare beneficiaries, according to the Federated Ambulatory Surgery Association (FASA).

SDS Accreditation Update: Expand your mandated pre-procedure timeout to enhance patient safety efforts in the OR

A decrease in the perceived risk of wrong-site surgery and an improvement in collaboration among members of the operating room team improved significantly following the introduction of a standardized operating room briefing for all surgical procedures performed at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore.

SDS Accreditation Update: Evaluate results of patient surveys carefully

A well-managed and carefully-monitored patient satisfaction improvement project is one reason that staff members at The Urologic Surgical Center in Lancaster, PA, received good marks and positive comments from their surveyor in January 2007.

SDS Accreditation Update: Joint Commission changes its name

The unwieldy name of Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations no longer exists. As of January 2007, the accreditation association's name was changed to The Joint Commission.

SDS Accreditation Update: Health care literacy gap is addressed

What did the doctor say? Improving health literacy to protect patient safety is a free white paper offered by The Joint Commission that explores the use of medical terms in communications with patients and the challenges that this use creates for patients.

SDS Accreditation Update: Federal agency satisfied with association firewall

The investigative arm of Congress reported that The Joint Commission and its not-for-profit educational and consulting affiliate, Joint Commission Resources (JCR), have made progress in the past several years to prevent improper sharing of facility-specific information, though continued monitoring is warranted.

Patient Safety Alert supplement

Same-Day Surgery – April 1, 2007

April 1, 2007