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F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 4 | O U T P AT 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
alcohol.
• Cardboard from boxes brought by vendors visiting the facility isn't
allowed in sterile areas.
• Patients undergo a triple-prep: shower at home, wipe down in pre-
op, then prepped in surgery.
• Patients are subject to nasal swabs and cleaning to keep MRSA con-
tained.
Enacting rules that might seem overly stringent to some and empow-
ering all staff to speak up for their enforcement are just par for the
course now. The surgical industry isn't going to win against infections
with antibiotics, but rather with protocol management, isolation and
proper treatment.
Bigger and better
Ambulatory surgery is moving toward bigger cases, performed in
better-managed environments, with better outcomes. Pursuing new
ideas and staying ahead of the curve are our goals for the future.
Our administrator (see "5 Keys to a Successful Spine Program" on
page 52) is a champion of education — she goes to the national and
state meetings, as do our surgeons and I. Whether it's looking at
changes in infection control, new techniques or the latest implants,
the key is to be able to accept that surgery is constantly evolving.
With a core group of management, docs who are interested and
nurses who have input, quality improvement is an ongoing process.
This is the real business model, one that will make a facility prof-
itable at the end of the day. OSM
Dr. Bray (
info@discmdgroup.com
) is a board-certified neurological spine sur-
geon and the CEO and founding director of DISC Sports & Spine Center (
dis-
cmdg roup.com
) in Marina del Rey, Calif.
N E U R O S U R G E R Y
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