issue or concern,
it's going to take
a lot for me to
change my
mind."
• Wheels. Back
to those wheels.
As Ms. Plett
found out the
hard way, there's
a potential down-
side to pressure-
cleaning your OR equipment. The power of the water can literally
rinse away the natural lubrication from wheels. "Staff were having
a terrible time trying to move all of the wheeled pieces of equip-
ment," says Ms. Plett, who called the situation a "back injury wait-
ing to happen." But they weren't just harder to maneuver than a
rusted shopping cart. The pressure-washing also apparently loos-
ened some of the wheels from their legs. When staff lifted a table
loaded with orthopedic implants over a cord, a wheel fell off,
sending the table's contents flying down the hall. That's when Ms.
Plett ordered new wheels for every back table and case cart,
including pins that go through the table leg where the wheel
attaches. No more grunting and groaning when wheeling equip-
ment, and no more tables tipping over.
• Shoes. Every Thompson Peak employee receives a $40 annual
stipend toward a pair of slip-proof, skid-proof shoes: housekeep-
ing, nursing, everybody. The shoes cost around $60, so staff only
have to pay $20 out of their own pockets. "We've shown that
[these shoes] dramatically reduce the number of slips, trips and
7 0
O U T P A T 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 | S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5
z PREVENT SHARP INJURIES Ms. Plett instituted a no-passing
zone policy to cut down on sharps injuries and needlesticks.
Pat
Plett,
BNRN,
MS-HSA,
CNOR
O R E X C E L L E N C E AWA R D S O R E X C E L L E N C E AWA R D S
