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O U T S O U R C I N G
Now the company takes care of payroll, competencies, employee issues and training, including OSHA, bloodborne pathogens, ergonomics and sexual harassment. Individual ASC administrators still take care of hiring, and clinical in-services and training are handled at the local level.
"Recently one ASC hired new staff members and, a few days in, before the ASC had had a chance to do their competencies, the state came in for an inspection," says Ms. Serda. "We had a brief moment of panic; there's so much to do to get new staff up to speed on clinical processes and procedures, competencies hadn't been completed yet."
Thankfully, when the employees had filled out their new-hire packets, they supplied e-mail and phone contact information — and, it turns out, "our HR company had communicated with them separately and ensured all competencies had been completed through a Web portal and were on file electronically," says Ms. Serda. "Everything the state wanted was at the ready.
"HR issues poses one of the biggest potential lawsuit risks," says Ms. Serda. "You really do need someone with the experience and the expertise."
Instrument reprocessors
When Jayne Byrd, RN, MSN, first joined Rex Healthcare in Raleigh, N.C., the sterile processing department was understaffed, lacked the space and equipment to do the job right, and lacked clear leadership. She was put in charge of sorting out the problem and, after an unsuccessful recruitment effort, she knew it was time to look outside.
"I should be putting my time and energy into OR behavior, clinical support and nurse management; sterile processing wasn't my expertise," says Ms. Byrd, who is VP of surgical services. "But I recognized that our surgical program was in the midst of rapid growth, sterile
