2. Involve your physicians
Swapping out all of your center's scalpels for safety-engineered blades
is by no means an easy assignment, but it will be much easier to sell
to your surgeons if they have a say in the process.
"Don't force a change on anyone," says Karen Maloney, RN, BSN,
CASC, directory of ambulatory surgery centers for Allegheny Health
Network in Wexford, Pa. "Let them know that this isn't optional, but
make sure they feel like they're part of it. A decision is being made,
and they get to choose which one they'll be using."
Physicians at her health system's 3 ASCs are currently in the
process of hands-on trialing 3 types of safety scalpels. One unique
benefit of this particular trial, she notes, is that it hasn't been weight-
ed by cost considerations since the scalpel's prices aren't that much
different from each other.
Instead, the instruments' weights and the ease of activating their
safety features were front and center. "The handles were a big deal,"
says Ms. Maloney. "Were they close to what they're used to handling?
Did they change how they do things?"
The participatory roles you extend to your surgeons should be gen-
uine and not perfunctory. When you're reviewing their survey respons-
es on what they liked and disliked about a product, or discussing their
experiences with each one, take their input seriously, even if this
means considering an option outside of the original purchasing plans.
"Ultimately, we explained that we were switching to safety blades,"
says Ms. Law, "and if they did not like these, then we would find an
alternative. One surgeon did not like [a manufacturer's blade]. The rep
tried to work with her, but eventually we switched to another manu-
facturer's safety blade."
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