Another reason to always read and follow IFUs: Some enzymatic detergents require that you test the water temperature before you clean instruments and devices...

When it comes to retained surgical items (RSI), you shouldn't assume anything, you should prove it. And if you don't see it, you should find it. Working in surgery,...

Cleaning dirty endoscopes is a high priority, but the equally critical process of getting dirty scopes safely to the cleaning area — and keeping them clean on the way back...

Your surgeons might have the greatest training, the most accurate technique and work with cutting-edge equipment, but they can’t fix what they can’t see. Lighted...

Before nursing students can go into the OR with the surgeons they’ve been assigned to, we show them the basics of hand hygiene, personal protection equipment...

As patients' out-of-pocket healthcare costs continue to rise, more and more are taking out loans or lines of credit through their surgical facilities to cover their...

An IV start should be a little pinch, not a big ouch, a minor procedure, not a major ordeal. Patients dread surgery's necessary evil — and your nurses might, too....

After years of running your busy facility, you finally decide it's time to see if the grass really is greener on the other side. Problem is, it's been so long since you've updated...

If you don't ask your patients if they smoke weed, you might want to start. As more states legalize both medicinal (33 states and D.C.) and recreational (10 states and D.C.)...

It's no secret that a stapler failure can quickly turn a routine procedure into an emergency. What's surprising is the alarming number of times staplers have misfired...

Yes, accreditation surveys are all but guaranteed to cause you some degree of stress. But a sense of overwhelming dread shouldn't accompany a surveyor's visit to...

The Laser Spine Institute's final day started like many others. Prospective patients called in from as far as the coast of Africa for consultations. Families flew in from Canada...

In an emergency, there's no time to waste. From bad weather to bad outcomes, your staff must be prepared to respond to all sorts of emergencies — knowing what to do...

Instead of discarding unused fentanyl in real time, your anesthesia provider aggregates all discards and brings them out for witnessing by another licensed professional...

Want to help ensure your OR team covers fire safety during pre-op time outs? Affix a small flame graphic to the lower left-hand corner of every mobile workstation screen...

From speed bumps and sticky pads to arm tucks and tilt tests, you pull out all the stops to protect patients when you place them in the Trendelenburg position....

Patients often neglect to share important health information with their anesthesia providers before surgery. They might not realize that taking ginkgo biloba for memory,...

Can a urology waiting room designed to look more like a locker room prod men to get a prostate exam? The urology department at Mount Sinai Health System is...

The next time you need a lesson in radiation safety, pop your head into a procedure room to watch an interventional pain doc at work....

Restaurant gift cards are nice, but if you’re looking for a way to honor your nurses for their extraordinary compassionate and skillful care in a way they’ll cherish long...