Medical Center in Storm Lake,
Iowa, says 4K imaging lets sur-
geons zoom in on minute anatomy
without losing an ounce of detail.
The difference in picture quality
among the offerings from various
vendors is subtle, but noticeable,
according to Ms. Orth-Nebitt, who
oversaw the recent installation of
4K video in 4 of her hospital's ORs,
with each upgrade costing about
$100,000. She decided to put the
monitors on booms in the 2 larger
ORs and place the screens on
mobile carts in the 2 smaller rooms
to provide more versatility when
the imaging equipment isn't needed.
Her surgeons were over the
moon about the images displayed
on a 55-inch monitor that was
brought in for a trial, but, luckily, their feet remained on terra firma.
"They eventually realized it would be impractical and inefficient to move the
larger monitors around the room between cases," says Ms. Orth-Nebitt. "They're
now more than happy with the 32-inch monitors we ended up purchasing."
The general surgeons at BVRM were very interested in adding 3D laparo-
scopes to gain better depth perception for suturing during complex hysterec-
tomies, but balked at adding the technology when they found out it required
a 10 mm camera. "They realized patients would be much more interested in
smaller incisions than in what goes on underneath the skin," says Ms. Orth-
Nebitt. That type of give and take is needed when trying to figure out which
technologies are truly needed in your ORs.
6 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • M a y 2 0 1 7
• WATER WORKS Orthopedic surgeons might prefer monitors that
provide excellent views of the action in fluid-filled joints.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
