Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Clear Cut - July 2015 - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.

Issue link: http://outpatientsurgery.uberflip.com/i/541061

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 11 of 132

1 2 O U T P A T 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 | J U LY 2 0 1 5 Say No to Surveillance Cameras in the OR A proposed law would require ASCs and hospitals to install black boxes. A re surveillance cameras in the OR a good idea? Depends on why they're there. If they're intended to enhance surgeon performance and to find out why adverse events happen in the name of patient safety, then, yes, the very black box technology that has helped improve airline safety could do the same for surgery. But if the camera's job is to snoop, to be Big Brother looking over your shoulder during procedures and watching your every move, then we say no to tracking time-stamped data. Some argue that cameras could help prevent providers from behav- ing badly, as well as aid malpractice victims and even help justify a doctor's defense against malpractice. As you can see in the InstaPoll results to the right, a panel of our readers is split right down the mid- dle. Others argue that a high-risk industry like surgery should monitor the performance of frontline workers. We disagree, especially when you consider what's behind recent efforts to install cameras in operat- ing rooms. If you haven't heard the incredibly insensitive anesthesiologist trash the sedated patient who inadvertently recorded his entire colonoscopy on his iPhone, take a few minutes to listen at osmag.net/nFqFF5. Soon after this story went viral, the push for cameras in the OR began to pick up steam. Last month, a Wisconsin state legislator introduced a bill that would require surgery centers and hospitals to offer surgical patients the option to have their surgical procedures videotaped. Proponents of the E D I T O R ' S P A G E Dan O'Connor

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Outpatient Surgery Magazine - Clear Cut - July 2015 - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine