chase thousands of dollars
in additional instruments.
Manage loaners.
Have techs create and
manage a sign-in policy for
vendors bringing in loaner
instrument sets. Require
that all trays and instru-
ments be on-site and signed
in at the sterile processing
department at least 48 hours
before the start of the case
in which the tools will be
used. This gives techs time
to preview the instrumenta-
tion to make sure all needed
items are present and
reprocessed before the
scheduled case. Techs are
also able to spot waste-reduction opportunities by pulling unneeded
instruments that are included in sets. Their efforts hold instrument ven-
dors accountable for the accuracy of the sets they bring into your facili-
ty and can consolidate instruments.
Involve your techs. Include techs in surgical staff training and
in-services when you're adding a new procedure. Set up the sup-
plies and instruments in the OR, so sterile processing techs see all the
instruments that will be used and how the table is set up. That exer-
cise gives techs a much better understanding of how instruments are
2
3
Business Advisor
BA
2 0 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 9
• MORE WITH LESS OrthoNY Surgical Suites reduced the number of
instrument trays needed for total knees, and saved both time and money in
the process.
OrthoNY
Surgical
Suites