"It's 6:31 am.
The first case in OR 3 is scheduled to start at 7 am.
The OR tech can't find the trays.
The Vendor can't find the trays.
The SPD can't find the trays.
The patient has been nervously anticipating this surgery for weeks.
They and their spouse took off work to drive in the night before so they could be at the hospital on time for registration, pre-op, and are ready to roll back to the OR room.
But it's 6:31 am and no one can find the trays.
The surgeon already consulted with the patient around the approach and procedure earlier in the week.
The vendor was notified which implants would be used, and the trays were shipped from the warehouse across the country for this specific patient.
Every one is shuffling around the OR and hallway.
But it's 6:31am and no one can find the trays.
This story is NOT fiction.
This reality plays itself out each and every day at facilities across the US.
All the wheels of surgery are put into the play from initial consult, scheduling, pre-approvals, and more all the way to the "big day" -- only to show up to the OR to hear "we can't find the trays."
Who's fault is it?
Come now, let us reason together.
This is not a "who" problem.
This is a systemic problem.
To date, the only sure-fire solution is total chain of physical custody (typically by the Vendor rep) from the time of delivery, through reprocessing, from SPD to the OR, and then to the specific room. But this process is an unscalable, unattainable manual process, again -- wholly dependent on the presence of the vendor rep. Even with this manual process, trays still get "lost" between the time the rep leaves the hospital at 11pm before they return at 5:30am the next morning.
Yes, current tech has come a loooong way with surgical instrument tracking, vendor tray management, scheduling interfaces, and more. But we're not (quite) there yet in hardwiring this chain of custody.
Calling all #medtech innovators.
We need your help at 6:31 am tomorrow morning."
-Hank Balch
#sterileprocessing
Follow us today:
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The first case in OR 3 is scheduled to start at 7 am.
The OR tech can't find the trays.
The Vendor can't find the trays.
The SPD can't find the trays.
The patient has been nervously anticipating this surgery for weeks.
They and their spouse took off work to drive in the night before so they could be at the hospital on time for registration, pre-op, and are ready to roll back to the OR room.
But it's 6:31 am and no one can find the trays.
The surgeon already consulted with the patient around the approach and procedure earlier in the week.
The vendor was notified which implants would be used, and the trays were shipped from the warehouse across the country for this specific patient.
Every one is shuffling around the OR and hallway.
But it's 6:31am and no one can find the trays.
This story is NOT fiction.
This reality plays itself out each and every day at facilities across the US.
All the wheels of surgery are put into the play from initial consult, scheduling, pre-approvals, and more all the way to the "big day" -- only to show up to the OR to hear "we can't find the trays."
Who's fault is it?
Come now, let us reason together.
This is not a "who" problem.
This is a systemic problem.
To date, the only sure-fire solution is total chain of physical custody (typically by the Vendor rep) from the time of delivery, through reprocessing, from SPD to the OR, and then to the specific room. But this process is an unscalable, unattainable manual process, again -- wholly dependent on the presence of the vendor rep. Even with this manual process, trays still get "lost" between the time the rep leaves the hospital at 11pm before they return at 5:30am the next morning.
Yes, current tech has come a loooong way with surgical instrument tracking, vendor tray management, scheduling interfaces, and more. But we're not (quite) there yet in hardwiring this chain of custody.
Calling all #medtech innovators.
We need your help at 6:31 am tomorrow morning."
-Hank Balch
#sterileprocessing
Follow us today:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BeyondCleanPodcast
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beyondclean
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeyondCleanInfo
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondcleanpodcast
Home Page: http://beyondclean.net
Apple Music: http://apple.co/2xzxECU
Stitcher: https://lnkd.in/e4hU6Pp
Google Play: https://bit.ly/2LY5pss
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nbJRcJ