At night, do you dream about having a perfectly efficient OR? Do you fantasize about moving seamlessly from patient to patient, providing each and every one of them with excellent surgical results? Is your equipment always precisely calibrated? In this dream world of yours, are your turnovers seamless and stress-free?
You’re not alone: many people who work in ORs dream about having more efficient case days.
Below, we’ve outlined four ways in which you can increase the productivity in your OR.
1. Measure, measure, measure
Before you can start making your OR more efficient, you first need to determine where you’re losing time. How much time do you usually dedicate to prep? How long is your typical patient turnover? How much time does it take you to complete the actual surgery?
Answering these questions can help you diagnose where your OR is succeeding, and where it’s stumbling. You might be surprised.
2. Work on that patient flow
One of the best predictors of a successful case day is patient flow, or the way in which facility members move patients from one part of the surgery to the next. Poor patient flow can make for an inefficient case day. Good patient flow, meanwhile, can have you feeling like a surgical rock star.
Since all ORs are a little different, designing patient flow can sometimes pose a challenge. Where is the best place to put the laser? Does it make sense to start the patient here or there? You might need to perform some trial and error before determining the best arrangement for your OR.
3. Keep your equipment in tip-top shape
Few things are worse than needing to cancel a case day because of unexpected equipment problems. Prior to case day, make sure that your lasers are calibrated, your surgical instruments are properly stored, and everything is working as it should be.
If you’re lucky enough to have redundant supplies and equipment, you can breathe a sigh of relief. Of course, you need to make sure that your back-ups stay in good shape, too.
4. Get yourself a second OR
Having a second OR can significantly boost your productivity. We’ve written about this before in our blog – a second OR can allow you to seamlessly move from one patient to the next without rushing the turnover process. Some physicians also prefer to schedule right and left eye cases in separate rooms so that they don’t need to rearrange the equipment.
Of course, having two ORs means maintaining twice the amount of equipment, which isn’t always feasible.
Remember that there’s a difference between an efficient surgery and a rushed surgery. By following these four guidelines, you can see more patients without sacrificing their quality of care.
Need help making this happen? Sightpath Medical’s all-in-one service guarantees that surgeons have everything they need for a productive case day. Since we have over 25 years of OR experience, our professionals are experts at maximizing OR efficiency and patient flow. Our equipment and supplies are always carefully calibrated, avoiding unnecessary delays at the start of the surgery. We also bring back-up equipment, including back-up phacoemulsification units, on the off chance that there are equipment problems.
For more information about how Sightpath Medical can improve OR efficiency, contact us today.
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