between the operating
room and central ster-
ile because the 2 sides
might not appreciate
what the other ones
do and go through on
a daily basis. You can
bridge the communi-
cation and culture gap
by looking at Dr.
Nichol for inspiration.
"Not every surgeon
is willing to walk through sterile processing to see how it really
works," says Mr. Beakes. "That's magic, and it doesn't happen every-
where. It's those humble leaders who want to know how they can
improve the jobs of $15-per-hour techs who will change health care."
Have staff members from each area walk in the other's shoes for a
day, so they gain an appreciation for the responsibilities they have and
the pressures they face. "If both groups can see that and appreciate
how much they depend on each other, it really helps to develop the
teamwork needed to keep instrument flow going," says Dr. Mandel.
Efforts to improve the performance of sterile processing will fail if
you don't address related issues in the OR. For example, pre-treating
instruments with enzymatic cleaner immediately after they're used in
the OR keeps bioburden from hardening and hinged tools from lock-
ing up. "That's an enormous help to the sterile processing staff, who
work extremely hard to decontaminate instruments before steriliza-
tion," says Mr. Beakes.
Part of Littleton Hospital's orientation program for all new repro-
cessing techs involves shadowing an OR nurse for a couple days. "It
N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 3 7
• EYE TEST You can spot areas of needed process improvement if you know where
to look.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
