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O P H T H A L M O L O G Y
in Springfield, Ill. "Our surgeons
complete cases in 5 to 10 minutes," she explains. "We have
we're never waiting" around
for sets to come back from
reprocessing.
Carol DeFillippo, MPS, RN,
CNOR, outsources her hospi-
EYE CHART Ensuring the right implants are always
available will avoid unneeded delays.
tal's cataract cases to a com-
Dewight Davis, RN, CNOR
at least 7 cataract trays so
pany that brings in enough equipment, staff and instruments to support 2 cataract rooms
running at full speed. The director of operative and perioperative services at Wilson (N.C.)
Medical Center says the outsourcing firm — which saved her facility from pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into a cataract service line — says the company provides 8
instrument sets for the 24 cases the hospital hosts between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Ms.
DeFillippo emphasizes that's enough to reprocess instruments between cases so no item
undergoes immediate-use sterilization simply for efficiency's sake.
• Stretcher chairs. "Transporting patients on a single surface from pre-op to post-op on a
day filled with 15 procedures can save you 30 minutes," says Scott Wilson, materials biomedical manager at the Center for Surgery in Encinitas, Calif. Many survey respondents
agree that stretcher chairs help keep a cataract schedule on track because time isn't
wasted transferring patients from one surface to another, and they're already positioned
properly and adequately warmed as they're wheeled into the OR.
J A N U A R Y 2013 | O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E
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