shield. Could the pit-crew concept help turn over an operating
room? It sure has at Enloe Outpatient Center in Chico, Cal., where
each of the 4-member turnover team is assigned a zone, says Teresa
Wahl, CRCST, manager of sterile processing.
Zone 1 covers the bed to the booms, the lights, booms, IV poles and
bed wiped with a disinfectant. Zone 2 comprises the perimeter of the
room, including the prep stand, circulator station, ring stand, back
tables and kick buckets. Zone 3 entails mopping, stocking towels and
pillowcases, and taking the trash and used linens to a pickup point
near the door. Zone 4 is the anesthesia area, disposing of used cir-
cuits, tubing and canisters, and wiping the machine with disinfectant.
"We did that so people wouldn't forget to take care of everything in
their particular zone, like a pit crew," says Ms. Wahl. "We didn't want
anyone worried about anyone else's zone; just their own zone."
Why only 4 members of the turnover team? "With more than 4, it's
just chaos and confusion," says Ms. Wahl. "Before, we had 6 people
asking each other, 'Did you get this?' People were running into each
other during room turnover, uncertain as to who was doing what,
what was getting done and what wasn't. Some things were duplicated,
others weren't getting done. So the rule became we could have no
more than 4 people in the OR getting it ready."
Average turnover time: 5 to 10 minutes. Ms. Wahl also credits her
facility's sizable investment in turnover aids — fluid waste manage-
ment solutions, turnover kits, boom systems, procedure packs and
disinfectant wipes — for helping to lower turnover times.
2. Assignment cards
To Patti Paxton, RN, the videotape didn't lie. Looking for ways to
shorten the 25- to 30-minute turnover times at St. Luke's Magic Valley
Medical Center in Twin Falls, Idaho, Ms. Paxton videotaped staff turn-
D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 6 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 4 7