A Sneak Peek at What's Being Introduced at This Year's AORN Congress

Stryker Corporation Demonstrates Continued Commitment to Healthcare Sustainability Through Educational Seminar

Stryker Corporation demonstrates its commitment to environmental responsibility in healthcare by providing a grant to support Lighten Your Carbon Footprint, an education session at the 59th AORN Congress in partnership with Pfiedler Enterprises. Today, 800 nurses will learn about the link between environmental and human health, review environmental best practices, as well as discuss strategies to reduce the carbon footprint of the nations operating rooms.
 
Healthcare sustainability is an important focus at Stryker, because our hospital partners are asking for solutions that optimize the use of environmental resources and improve quality care delivery, says Tamara Cutler, vice president of public affairs at Stryker. We understand the importance of clinician involvement in carrying out sustainability initiatives that make a difference every day. This is our third year supporting the event at AORN, because we believe in championing nurses role and providing them with measurable ways they can help lower their facilitys carbon footprint.
 
The continued education session features some of the most prominent leaders in healthcare sustainability who will share their experiences implementing environmental initiatives. Panelists include:
 
 Cecilia DeLoach Lynn, MBA, Practice Greenhealth
 Martin A. Makary, MD, MPH, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
 Jodi Sherman, MD, Yale University School of Medicine
Julie K. Moyle, RN, MSN, Consulting 1x1
 
Reducing the environmental impact of the healthcare industry is a big task. When we break it down to individual hospital departments, its easier for clinicians to see the difference they can make, says Bob Jarboe, executive vice president of Practice Greenhealth. I applaud Stryker and Pfiedler for bringing this important event to the nations largest nursing conference to acknowledge the key part nurses play in helping to advance healthcare sustainability.
 
In addition to supporting this event, Stryker is engaged in efforts to lower the environmental footprint of its own operations and pursue new sustainable healthcare initiatives. Some of its current efforts include:
 
 Supply chain solutions, such as reprocessing and remanufacturing, that help divert medical device waste from landfills and reduce supply costs, thus enabling a reallocation of resources to support other quality care initiatives.
 Products that help hospitals reduce waste. Strykers Neptune 2 system reduces the amount of red bag waste a hospital will send to the landfill or incinerator. A solidified three liter suction canister from an average procedure is roughly equal in red bag waste to 77 procedures with Neptune 2. 
 The use of recycled steel content, environmentally-friendly coatings and green circuit boards in certain products.
 LEED-certified manufacturing facilities in Portage, Michigan and Suzhou, China, with several more certifications expected this year.
 The use of packaging in certain products, such as recycled content in boxes and plastic, and blister packs instead of expanded polystyrene foam   cushioning, is evolving to be more environmentally-friendly.
 Collaboration with vendors and contractors to align supply chains with Strykers environmental standards.

Medline Receives AORN Seal of Recognition for New Education Programs

Medline Industries, Inc. announces that it has received the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Seal of Recognition for its new interactive education course, Speak Your Truth for Improving Patient and Staff Safety. 

A free CE course for health care staffs, Speak Your Truth is a key element of Medlines empOweR program, an innovative new program designed to empower OR staffs by increasing the awareness of safety and quality issues through several unique training and education programs. Medline is introducing this new course, as well as the entire empOweR program, at the 59th Annual Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress in New Orleans.

As a leader in patient safety, AORN is dedicated to reducing errors, educating perioperative professionals about safe practices, and creating innovative and collaborative strategies to strengthen the culture of safety, says Susan Bakewell, MS, RN-BC, AORN's director of perioperative education. Earning the Seal of Recognition communicates to our 41,000 members, and the rest of the perioperative nursing community, that Medlines Speak Your Truth for Improving Patient and Staff Safety educational program is founded on excellence in safe patient care.

This designation confirms that the content of training and in-service programs and materials have undergone thorough review by AORN and addresses team skills and communication practices, which will result in safer patient care and reduced numbers of errors, according to AORN.

In a national survey, 85 percent of responding nurses said a safety tool had alerted them of a problem that might have been missed and potentially harmed a patient.  Another 58 percent revealed they were in situations where it was either unsafe to speak or they were unable to get others to listen.(1) 

Speak Your Truth for Improving Patient and Staff Safety is designed to address these alarming issues through a one-hour, interactive video course featuring renowned health culture expert Kathleen Bartholomew, RN, MN. OR staffs will learn the importance of speaking up in the OR and gain insights into why staffs are afraid to tell the truth, especially about patient care. 

AORN also extended the Seal of Recognition for another Medline interactive course, Pressure Ulcer Prevention for Perioperative Services.  The incidence of perioperative-related pressure ulcers occurring as a result of surgery has been as high as 66 percent.(2) Effective prevention of pressure ulcer development is critical to improving care for post-surgical patients and can greatly reduce the associated costs for acute-care facilities. 

Medline first received the AORN Seal of Recognition for this comprehensive educational program on June 1, 2009, and AORN continues to recognize it as a course that meets AORN standards for excellence in safe patient care.

Medlines Pressure Ulcer Prevention for Perioperative Services CE education program is available free through various product bundle options.

The AORN Seal of Recognition program is designed to assist healthcare professionals and consumers in selecting quality information that promotes safety and optimal outcomes for patients undergoing operative and other invasive procedures. A peer group of expert perioperative practitioners reviewed Medline's education to ensure that it is in accordance with the organization's perioperative standards and recommended practices.

References:
1. Maxfield D, Drenny J, Lavendero R, Groah L.  The Silent Treatment, a study presented by VitalSmarts, AORN and AACN.  Available at:  http://www.silenttreatmentstudy.com/.  Accessed November 18, 2011

2. Recommended practices for positioning the patient in the perioperative practice setting.  Perioperative Standards and Recommended Practices.  Denver, CO: AORN, Inc; 2008
 

Cardinal Health Announces FDA 510(K) Clearance of Durablue Sterilization Wrap and Indications for Use In STERIS V-Pro® Systems

Cardinal Health announces the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance of Cardinal Health DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap, 510(k) Premarket Notification K112918, including specific Indications For Use with the Lumen, Non Lumen and Flexible Cycles of STERISs Amsco V-PRO®1, Amsco V-PRO®1 Plus, and Amsco V-PRO® maX Low-Temperature Sterilization Systems.

 This clearance makes DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap the only sterilization wrap in the market that is cleared for use with the Flexible Cycle in the Amsco V-PRO® maX Sterilization System. DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap, a double-layer Spunbond/Meltblown/Spunbond wrap made with non-woven, polypropylene technology for strength, durability and microbial protection, was validated for sterilization and aeration during all pre-programmed V-PRO® Sterilization System cycles.  As a result, DuraBlue Instructions For Use have been amended to include all V-PRO® Systems as an intended modality for items wrapped in DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap.

Sterilization wrap is critical for the productive use of reusable surgical instruments, because it enables the effective sterilization of medical devices contained in instrument trays and maintains their sterility.Cardinal Health DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap can help bring efficiencies to the sterilization process while maintaining a high standard of aseptic technique. Its double-layer construction enables users to save time by using the simultaneous wrapping technique, eliminating the need for sequential wrapping with single-layer wrap.

"Were pleased that our wrap now has clearance for the STERIS Amsco V-PRO® Low-Temperature Sterilization System in addition to the pre-vacuum steam and STERRAD® Systems for which it already was approved," says Greg Groenke, general manager of Environmental Technologies at Cardinal Health. "Were committed to regulatory compliance, and were pleased to assure our customers using DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap that that they can reprocess their wrapped items in any V-PRO® System with confidence; because, the process has been thoroughly tested and is fully compliant with Food and Drug Administration regulations."

V-PRO® Sterilization Systems offer versatility, productivity and efficiency for low-temperature reprocessing of a variety of heat-sensitive lumened and non-lumened devices. The newest system, the V-PRO® maX Sterilizer, offers a new 35-minute Flexible Cycle for single and dual-channel surgical flexible endoscopes, along with the 28-minute Non Lum en Cycle and 55-minute Lumen cycle.

DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap is available in six color-coded basis weight models, providing durable protection for everything from lightweight linen packs to heavy instrument trays weighing up to 25 pounds. The wrap also is available in 14 sizes ranging from 12 inches by 12 inches to 54 inches by 90 inches.

Medline Helps Empower OR Teams With Innovative Education

From surgical infections and wrong-site surgeries to needlesticks and pressure ulcers, the list of what can go wrong during a surgical experience is long, intimidating, and costly. Recent studies show that the cost to treat a single surgical site infection is more than $28,000.

To address these alarming issues, Medline has launched empOweR an innovative new program designed to empower OR staffs by increasing the awareness of safety and quality issues through several unique training and education programs; opening lines of communications within OR teams; and helping them streamline their operations through lean assessments and other efficiency tools. Medline introduced the empOweR program at the 59th annual Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress, the worlds largest gathering of OR nurses now in session in New Orleans.

While tremendous strides are being made, OR safety continues to be one of the issues that keeps hospital executives awake at night, says Edwin Loftin, RN, MBA, FACHE, vice president of nursing at Parrish Medical Center in Titusville, Fla. With Medlines new empOweR program, we now have access to valuable resources that will help our OR teams build a culture of safety within the OR.

Phase I of Medline's new empOweR educational series focuses on the most critical and fundamental safety issues facing ORs today, from preventing wrong-site surgery, retained objects and sharps injuries to maintaining normothermia and preventing pressure ulcers.

The capstone course for this initial series addresses the need to create a culture of safety empowering OR teams to speak up and speak out. Medline's new free CE course, "Speak Your Truth," addresses this critical need by helping build a foundation of communications and trust that fosters a culture of safety. This unique staff empowerment training was just awarded the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses' (AORN) Seal of Recognition, a designation that confirms the content of training and in-service programs and materials has undergone thorough review by AORN and addresses team skills and communication practices, which will result in safer patient care and reduced numbers of errors, according to AORN.

Every day, Medline account managers work with more than 1,500 OR teams throughout the country and the world to help them improve the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of their OR operations. We asked them for their greatest pain points and their response was loud and clear: safety, efficiency and cost. They told us that building a culture of safety is critical and that they need help in empowering their teams to speak up and speak out, says Kimberly Haines, RN, certified OR nurse, vice president of clinical resources, Medline.

Through our new empOweR program, Medline is providing OR teams with clinically proven solutions and resources to help them solve their most challenging issues. Through this series, we are helping them enhance their culture of safety, reduce the risk of patient harm and elevate the patient experience at their facility, Haines adds.

Ecolab Launches Encompass OR to Improve Operating Room Hygiene

Ecolab Inc. has launched the EnCompass OR Environmental Hygiene program, which provides healthcare facilities with a proven approach to improve the cleanliness of operating rooms (OR) and reduce the risk of infections. The training and education program has received the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Seal of Recognition for meeting the guidelines set forth in AORNs Perioperative Standards and Recommended Practices.

Proper environmental cleaning is essential for effective patient care in the operating room because high-touch surfaces can harbor infection-causing pathogens if not disinfected thoroughly, every time, says Philip C. Carling, MD, director of Infectious Diseases at Carney Hospital in Boston and advisor to Ecolab Healthcare. In fact, a recent study to determine if high-touch surfaces in the operating room were effectively disinfected found that only 25 percent (237 of 946 targeted surfaces) were cleaned properly. The study also found that enhanced staff training and education yielded significant improvements.

The new EnCompass OR program builds upon Ecolabs comprehensive EnCompass Environmental Hygiene program for patient rooms, bringing its standardized processes, training, objective monitoring, automated reporting, and effective cleaning tools and products to the operating room. It includes DAZO® fluorescent marking gel for monitoring surface cleanliness and an iPod mobile app for easy tracking and real-time reporting of environmental hygiene results.
                       
In addition, to optimize operating room turnover efficiency, Ecolab offers the CleanOp® Room Turnover System, a line of single-use products that support infection prevention. A CleanOp system contains operating room table linen, bags, mops and wipes and is configured to the hospitals specific needs. Single-use microfiber mops and wipes and Mojave® O.R. table sheets, which feature a three-layer material comprised of an impervious bottom layer, a super absorbent middle layer, and a top patient comfort layer, help reduce the risk of cross contamination between surgical procedures. The CleanOp system facilitates easy access to necessary supplies to both clean an OR suite and quickly set it up for the next procedure.

We know the positive impact environmental hygiene has on preventing infections and have developed the EnCompass OR program to give perioperative staff the right tools, training and programmatic approach based on best practices, to improve OR turnover efficiency, more accurately measure outcomes and drive continuous improvement, says Paul B. Chaffin, senior vice president and general manager for Ecolab Healthcare North America.

The EnCompass OR training materials are informative and meet the associations standards for excellence in safe patient care, says Sharon Van Wicklin, MSN, RN, CNOR, CRNFA, CPSN, PLNC, perioperative nursing specialist, AORN.

Recommendations from the Joint Commission, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) include standardizing cleaning and monitoring cleaning results as key drivers of improving cleanliness and maintaining a sanitary environment.

Medline Introduces Long Sleeved OR Scrub 

Medline Industries, Inc. is introducing the healthcare industrys first-ever line of long-sleeved scrubs to help reduce the risk of infection by providing a protective barrier between the patient and a healthcare workers bare arms which can transmit bacteria. Medline introduced the new scrub this week at the 59th aAssociation of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress. 

Medline developed the new scrub top in response to recent changes in surgical standards and practices developed by the AORN and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which now require many members of OR teams to wear long-sleeved jackets for the first time.

Medlines new PerforMAX pOweR scrub line features long-sleeves that are sewn directly into the short sleeves of the scrub top to create a more fashionable layered look.  Made of a the same material as high-performance apparel like Under Armour®, the long-sleeves fit snug around the workers arms and provide the comfort and breathability of athletic wear. The scrubs, made of a blend of polyester, nylon and spandex, will initially be available in ciel blue and navy, both with grey sleeves and a grey modesty panel covering the v-neck. 

The latest AORN and OSHA guidelines recommend that nurses in the OR who are not wearing gowns, wear long-sleeved jackets to avoid accidental contamination of the sterile field. Long-sleeved attire is advocated to prevent bacterial skin shedding from bare arms.     

The problem many nurses have in complying with these regulations is not only finding the proper clothing that wont interact with the surgical site, but that are also comfortable and fashionable. Many long-sleeved scrub jackets or warm ups are made to be loose fitting with material that hangs down from the arm that could potentially drag across the patients skin during the skin prep process and contaminate the surgical site and thereby putting the patient at risk for infection. 

After the new regulations passed in 2010, we began asking nurses if they needed something new to help them comply with the new rules, says Jim Robertson, president of Medlines textile division. Just about everyone said that the current scrubs uniform they were wearing did not meet their needs.    

Medline designed the PerforMAX pOweR scrubs in partnership with one of its long-standing customers, Myrna Chang, DHA, RN, CNOR, director of perioperative services and sterile processing at OConnor Hospital in San Jose, Calif., who has personal experience with the challenges of OR apparel that is compliant, practical and comfortable.

For our OR circulating nurses to stay in compliance with the new regulations, we knew we needed to wear long-sleeved apparel but we couldnt find a jacket where the sleeve did not touch the patient and contaminate the prepped area, was comfortable and that looked good, says Chang. Both Medline and I had similar ideas about the need to produce long sleeve scrubs and I came up with the idea for a tight but elastic sleeve that did not touch the patient but kept the nurses warm in the OR and was  fashionable.

Medline tested the scrubs with the medical staff at several hospitals last summer with a resounding positive reaction. In fact, the results of the trials yielded several benefits, according to Robertson, including:
- Meeting AORN and OSHA requirements for wearing long-sleeves  
- Reducing the risk of contaminating the surgical site
- Cost reduction since the long-sleeved scrubs are less expensive than a jacket
- Convenience since the scrubs are one piece, which eliminates the search for second garment          
- Keeping nurses, doctors, anesthesiologists warm in the OR
- Additional pockets on the shirt  are convenient for keeping important materials
- Revolutionary design that is not only practical but also fashionable

The new design is much needed in the industry, says Chang. Doctors, who are understandably resistant to change in their OR, expressed the most interest in the new PerforMAX pOweR scrub, which shows you that weve really hit on something with this new design.         

Cintas Introduces Scrub Jackets to its Scrub Rental Program

Cintas Corporation announces that it will make surgical scrub jackets available through its scrub rental program. Jacket distribution will be accomplished through the use of Cintas automated dispensing machines.  Cintas will showcase the machines at booth #6230 during AORN Congress.

According to AORNs 2012 Recommended Practices for Surgical Attire, all non-scrubbed personnel in semi-restricted or restricted hospital areas should wear long-sleeved scrub jackets to contain bacteria present on skin1. The Cintas Scrub Rental Program is the only program available to provide nurses with the option of dispensing scrub tops, bottoms and jackets all in a single machine. This gives nurses a quick, easy and cost-effective solution for containing the spread of bacteria and promoting cleanliness while protecting themselves and their patients. 

Until now, hospitals have been reluctant to provide scrub jackets to their staff primarily because of theft and hoarding. Absent good inventory control, the costs of providing this important protection barrier seemed to outweigh the incremental benefit, says John Savage, director of marketing for healthcare at Cintas. By utilizing the Cintas Scrub Rental Program including our state-of-the-art dispensing and return system, as well as our individually wrapped scrub jackets, hospitals are able to control costs and meet the AORN recommendations.

With the Cintas Scrub Rental Program, all garments are supplied in dispensing machines accessible only by authorized personnel. Unlike many similar machines, the Cintas solution allows users to select separate sizes for tops, bottoms and jackets, ensuring a better, more comfortable fit for the wearer. The automated dispensers are installed, maintained and remotely monitored by Cintas to ensure inventory is consistently available for doctors and nurses. Soiled scrubs are collected, laundered to healthcare standards, individually poly-wrapped to limit contamination and then restocked in the machine.

Cintas entered this market in 2011 with a machine that has the capacity to grow as our customers needs evolve.  As the largest uniform rental company in the U.S., we are committed to ensuring the availability and professional appearance of the garments in our program, adds Savage. We designed the program to help mitigate the risk of contamination and we are pleased to extend this value to scrub jackets for physicians and staff.

To see the solution in action and to participate in a Cintas market research survey about the current state of your scrub situation, stop by booth #6230 at the 2012 AORN Congress March 24-29.  Everyone who completes a survey will receive an EcoGeneration® scrub top and be entered to win a tablet computer.  

ASP Offers Education and Solutions for Preventing HAIs

Advanced Sterilization Products (ASP) will deliver an educational workshop on infection prevention at the 59th annual Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress taking place March 24-29, 2012 in New Orleans. The 30-minute workshop, titled "Elevating the Standard of Care through Operational Excellence: Updates in Reprocessing Semi-critical and  Critical Devices," will be presented at seven different session times March 27-28 in the ASP exhibit booth (#3237), where ASP's  growing portfolio of infection prevention solutions will also be on display. Continuing Education (CE) study guides will be available.

"ASP shares a common mission with perioperative nurses to provide the safest possible healthcare environments and protect patients' lives against infection," says Barbara Trattler, ASP's director of clinical education. "With healthcare-associated infections on  the rise, ASP cares deeply about offering education and support to help nurses influence safe perioperative practices and deliver the highest standards of care for their patients."

ASP's educational workshop will focus on preventing patient infections through proper reprocessing of medical devices, including terminal sterilization and high-level disinfection methodologies. All workshop participants will receive a supporting study guide with a quiz that may be mailed in to receive two (2) CE credits.

Available Workshop Sessions at ASP Booth #3237:
- Tuesday, March 27:  10:1510:45 a.m., 11:1511:45 a.m., 1:151:45 p.m., 2:152:45 p.m.
- Wednesday, March 28:  10:1510:45 a.m., 11:1511:45 a.m., 1:151:45 p.m.

Workshop Instructors:
- Janet Moran, RN, MBA, CNOR (ASP Senior Clinical Education Consultant)
- Catherine K. Rocco, RN, MSN, CNOR (ASP Senior Clinical Education Consultant)

In addition to participating in ASP's educational workshop, conference attendees are welcome to visit the ASP exhibit booth to see the latest technology solutions for medical device sterilization and high-level disinfection including trusted STERRAD® Systems, the ground-breaking EVOTECH® Endoscope Cleaner and Reprocessor (ECR), and proven biocides.

The booth will also feature an exhibit and demonstration of the most recent addition to ASP's infection prevention portfolio, the GLOSAIR 600 System.  GLOSAIR Technology is designed to combat dangerous pathogens in the healthcare environment such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Influenza A Strain-Hong Kong, Influenza A (H5N1) and Rhinovirus by creating a mist of hydrogen peroxide that is uniformly dispersed to disinfect all hard nonporous surfaces, including the nooks and crannies.

ASP's team of knowledgeable infection prevention experts will be on hand at the booth throughout the conference to answer questions and support perioperative professionals in their quest to reduce HAIs at their facilities.

STERIS Corporation Invites Congress Attendees to Optimize Their Perioperative Performance

STERIS Corporations exhibit in Booth 3637 at the Association of PeriOperative Registered  Nurses (AORN) Congress will offer visitors interaction with holistic solutions that can make a meaningful difference in their  perioperative and sterile processing areas.

Sophisticated new STERIS programs, technologies and integration capabilities enable  streamlined workflow, increased throughput, simpler automated processes and hands-off operation that frees up staff for its more  important focus on patients.

STERISs powerful perioperative solutions continue to evolve and offer new opportunities for our Customers to achieve high performance environments, says Bill ORiordan, vice president and general manager of STERIS Surgical Solutions. We look forward to showing AORN members the advanced STERIS technologies and capabilities that are designed to help simplify and optimize their very complex worlds.

The perioperative areas of a hospital involve many daily functions and activities beyond the surgical procedures themselves; case scheduling, department staffing, instrument reprocessing and management, room set-up and turnover activities, and reporting and communication to staff, other departments and families, to name a few. The more these activities can be streamlined or automated, the more time medical professionals have to focus on direct patient care.

STERIS perioperative solutions are designed to help hospitals create reliable, measurable high performance environments that can help increase OR and CS throughput as well as improve safety and contribute to better patient outcomes. This is accomplished through high-quality integrated technology that takes over time-consuming manual chores. It is also achieved through the collection and reporting of objective, accurate data that provides evidence for meaningful workflow improvements. Although the solutions themselves are highly sophisticated behind the scenes, they are designed to be very friendly and even hands-free on the user side, to simplify their operation and automatically remove inefficiency and redundancy from the OR workflow.

Unlike other electronic board-based systems that document patient workflows manually when caregivers have the time (typically after patient care has been delivered), the RealView Perioperative Workflow Optimization Controller provides automatic time stamps at the time care is provided, which significantly reduces the need for multiple manual inputs and assures highly accurate status information. Time stamps are posted instantly to live dashboards strategically located at every point of patient care throughout the surgical department, including surgeon and staff lounges. Reliable up-to-the-minute progress updates are simultaneously provided to patients' families. This air traffic control type of situational awareness optimizes predictability and throughput and helps to increase case volumes. The workflow efficiencies that result can enhance staff, patient and family satisfaction, which is important since HCAPHS satisfaction survey scores are now tied to healthcare reimbursement.

In addition, the RealView software automatically collects customizable key performance indicator (KPI) data and instantly posts statistics and trends on electronic dashboards. This KPI data is often used by management and governance boards to establish accurate and objective performance baselines and measure progress toward continuous improvement. Furthermore, operating rooms with SAFE Situational Awareness for Everyone Controllers gain timely tableside patient data for each surgical case that helps optimize patient safety and enhances informed decision-making in the OR. The software automatically aggregates surgical case and patient information from the facilitys other data systems and displays it on an easy-to-read, dedicated screen in the OR. This eliminates additional data entry and phone calls, and wasted time searching for test results and other patient information.

High performance functions are all about improving patient and staff safety, eliminating unnecessary manual tasks, enhancing  workflow, and optimizing productivity. Though this may seem an unrealistic goal, it is possible with the right tools, information and  architecture, which can enable healthcare professionals to focus more completely on what they have been trained for. The RealView  Perioperative Workflow Optimization Controller, SAFE Situational Awareness for Everyone system, Harmony hybrid OR and surgical  integration technologies, and many other high-quality STERIS innovations are tools that can help providers achieve real-world high  performance environments. These solutions will be demonstrated at this years AORN Congress.

AORN attendees are also invited to register online for a chance to win a free high quality clinical education seminar through STERIS  University. Attendees can go to www.STERIS.com/AORN to register for this opportunity. Learn more about STERIS University at  http://university.steris.com/sterisu/.

CareFusion Announces New Take-Apart Line of Laparoscopic Instruments

CareFusion announces its new Snowden-Pencer® laparoscopic take-apart  instrument line, a portfolio of surgical instruments that  can be easily disassembled to aid in cleaning and sterilization.

Our new take-apart laparoscopic instruments can help support safer cleaning protocols for reusable medical equipment, at a potential cost savings compared to disposable instruments, said Jim Leitl, vice president and general manager of the Medical Specialties business of CareFusion. This addition to our market-leading surgical portfolio introduces unique product features not previously seen in the market that will help improve the usability, versatility and comfort of this category of laparoscopic instruments.

The new line of take-apart instruments features three components designed to be intuitively assembled and disassembled, increasing the ability to visually inspect the instrument during cleaning. The instrument also features both audible and visual cues to help ensure it has been properly and securely assembled.

I am very satisfied with all aspects of the Snowden-Pencer take-apart instrument line, which I believe is easy to clean and easier to assemble and disassemble than other products on the market today, says Mark Thompson, sterile processing manager for Mercy  Health Center in Oklahoma City, which served as a limited market release site. The instrument markers and snap-in-place assembly  make it easy to ensure that the instrument is properly assembled. The new take-apart instrument line from CareFusion meets the  needs of our sterile processing department as well as the needs of our surgeons.

The take-apart instrument line contains a versatile ring-handle design with an integrated ratchet mechanism, allowing surgeons to  easily and quickly adjust the ratchet. The ring-handle design also accommodates both traditional precision-style grips and palm  grips. The ergonomic ring handle also distributes pressure more evenly, helping reduce the potential for intraoperative hand fatigue.

I believe the Snowden-Pencer take-apart instruments are a necessity when performing advanced laparoscopic cases, says Dr.  Andrew M. DeWitt, a bariatric surgeon who participated in a limited market release at Princeton Baptist Medical Center in  Birmingham, Ala. These top-of-the-line instruments are exceptional, dependable and easy to use.

The versatility of the instrument line enables surgeons to select handles and shafts and choose from more than 55 grasper, dissector  and clamp inserts to create a customized configuration that meets the specific needs of the procedure and the surgeon.  Debuting at the 59th annual Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress, the new take-apart instruments add  to CareFusions comprehensive surgical offering, which includes V. Mueller® and Snowden-Pencer brand open, laparoscopic and  plastic surgery instruments, the IMPRESS® Instrument Management System, Pyxis® perioperative solutions and ChloraPrep® skin  preparation products.

The full portfolio of CareFusion solutions to help improve operating room effectiveness will be showcased in booth #5125 at AORN, March 24-29 in New Orleans. Currently in limited market release, the Snowden-Pencer laparoscopic take-apart instrument line is expected to be commercially  available in the coming months.

Cardinal Health Focuses on Operating Room Safety, Sterility and Infection Prevention at AORN Congress

At the 59th annual Associat ion of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) Congress,  Cardinal Health will highlight its continuing support of clinician education and solutions that can  help nurses drive cost-effectiveness and improve operating room (OR) outcomes.

As part of this expertise, Cardinal Health will host several continuing education (CE) activities focused on OR safety, sterility and infection prevention. Key topics include:

- Understanding facial protection: What to know and what to wear Todays OR personnel are confronted with the challenges of new  and drug-resistant pathogens as well as potential bloodborne and inhalation hazards. This continuing nursing education activity will  provide an overview of the health hazards inherent to the perioperative environment, r eview the various types of facial protection  devices available, and review clinical considerations regarding the appropriate selection and use of facial protection devices in  various surgical practice settings.
 
- Sterility assurance: A focus on packaging Perioperative personnel involved in the use, care, and handling of sterile surgical items  must remain aware of the relationship between proper packaging and sterility assurance of the packaged items, so this continuing  education activity will provide an overview of the impact of surgical site infections, address sterility assurance as it relates to the  various sterilization processes, and outline key criteria for the appropriate selection and use of packaging materials. Presenters will discuss best practices related to packaging, describe the types of sterilization wraps and provide troubleshooting techniques to avoid and resolve wet packs.

- AAMI levels and surgical gowns; know if youre protected Perioperative nurses must be knowledgeable about barrier fabric  qualities in order to select and use gowns appropriately in the OR practice setting, so this continuing education activity will provide  a review of the key considerations for the appropriate selection and use of surgical gowns as an infection prevention measure for  both patients and the surgical team. Presenters will review standards and guidelines pertaining to the selection and use of surgical  gowns published by various federal agencies and professional organizations, highlighting the Association for the Advancement of  Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) standard, Liquid Barrier Performance and Classification of Protective Apparel and Drapes Intended  for Use in Health Care Facilities (AAMI/ANSI PB70), which provides an objective standard to select the proper level of protection  needed for sp ecific procedures. An accompanying case study also will provide the participant with the opportunity to synthesize  the information and evaluate a workplace scenario related to surgical gown selection and use.

- Sharps Safety and Double-gloving Go Hand in Hand The operating room presents patient and practitioner risk due to sharps in the  setting, and double-gloving plays an important role in the reduction of bloodborne infections for the patient and the practitioner.

This continuing education activity addresses the history of sharps safety initiatives and provides evidence that supports the use of double-gloving as an OR-specific mitigation strategy for sharps risk and exposure to bloodborne pathogens
 

In addition to the four new courses being offered this year, the company is again offering these courses it offered at the 58th Congress:

- Topical Skin Adhesives: Safe, Strong and Secure Wound Closure Wound healing are essential to optimal outcomes for all surgical patients, and the healing process is facilitated by proper closure of the surgical wound. This continuing education course will provide information regarding the advancements in topical skin adhesives in surgery and the clinical benefits of their use. The session will focus on butyl- and octyl-cyanoacrylate skin adhesives and will identify the advantages and disadvantages of topical skin adhesives for surgical patients.

- Retained Foreign Objects: The Cost of Leaving Things Behind Retained Foreign Objects (RFOs) after surgery can result in patient morbidity and even mortality, and the cost of leaving them behind is significant for everyone involved. This continuing education activity not only will help perioperative nurses understand the ramifications and liabilities of the costs of RFOs, but it also will allow them to explore current technology and professional-recommended practices that will help them eliminate false counts and the incidence of retained foreign objects.

The aforementioned activities are sponsored by Pfiedler Enterprises through the California Board of Registered Nursing, with grant funds  provided by Cardinal Health. Each course is approved for two CE credits.

Beyond offering free CE activities, Cardinal Health will further support clinician education at its AORN Booth #4321 by highlighting products, supply chain expertise and productivity solut ions to help improve safety and efficiency in the OR. Attendees will be invited to a "Journey Through Your OR," utilizing interactive kiosks to create a customized road map of the clinical implications, products and services that matter most to them. As part of these customized tours, attendees can learn how to:

- Support patient and practitioner safety with products such as the companys new Protexis Powder-Free Surgical Gloves, with both latex and synthetic options; its recently released Smart-Seal Surgical Mask, designed to enhance fit and help reduce fog on eyewear; [its market-leading] SmartGown, RoyalSilk® and Astound® Surgical Gowns; and products designed to prevent retained foreign objects, such as the SurgiCount Safety Sponge® System, a comprehensive sponge counting and documentation system that helps prevent sponges and towels from unintentionally being left in patients during surgical procedures.

- Maintain a safe and sterile environment with offerings such as the double-layer DuraBlue Sterilization Wrap, which helps maintain the sterility of surgical instruments; and the SAF-T Pump Waste Disposal System, a liquid medical waste disposal system powered entirely by tap water that eliminates the need for pouring by quickly and safely emptying canisters into the sanitary sewer.

- Prevent infection and cross-contamination with help from proprietary products such as the Cardinal Health Tiburon® Surgical Drape, which has the industrys largest critical zone.

- Optimize OR efficiency via solutions like the Presource® Procedure Pack Program, a surg ical kitting process that helps customers increase productivity and maintain a high standard of patient care; and the fast-setting, durable butyl adhesive LiquiBand® Topical Skin Adhesive.

 

Sony Advanced Video Recording Solutions for the Operating Room to be Showcased at AORN Congress
 

Sony Electronics, together with Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corporation (RWMIC) , will be exhibiting an all-inclusive endoscopic solution - complete with video recording and printing for use in the operating room at AORN Congress.  The complete solution will be on display during the exhibitors hours at the Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corporation (RWMIC) booth, #3301. 
 
RWMIC and Sony Electronics will feature a comprehensive video cart solution for the operating room. This exciting solution includes images captured by Wolfs 5550 HD Endocam, which can be recorded on Sonys HVO-1000MD HD Blu-ray video recorder, or create stills using the UP-DR80MD medical grade printer, or sharing live with the use of the OPSIGATE  comprehensive web-based content management and delivery system.
 
Sony and Richard Wolf have collaborated to deliver a uniquely comprehensive endoscopic video solution, says Evan Mix, associate product manager of video for Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corporation.  Richard Wolf's superb HD image provided by the autoclavable 5550 HD Endocam, is now captured by the Sony HVO-1000MD digital recorder.  Together, Wolf and Sony bring advanced capabilities to video and still recording for the operating room, as well as streaming the end-to-end process, deliver hassle-free acquisition and access with high quality visuals.
 
When used together, the enterprise video system from Sony and the 5550 HD Endocam by Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corporation allow surgeons and other clinicians to record, access, view, edit, organize and distribute surgical video to other surgeons and patient care stakeholders.  The video from the 5550 HD Endocam camera is recorded with Sonys HVO-1000MD HD digital recorder, bringing web-based content management and delivery of video, stills and documents throughout a hospital network using the OPSIGATE system, along with the benefit to then produce vibrant printouts from Sonys UP-DR80MD printer.  Special housing of this equipment is capably managed with Wolfs Endocart, specifically designed for this enterprise video solution. 

Medline Launches Several New OR Safety Solutions at AORN Congress

From products to prevent hypothermia and deep vein thrombosis, to new educational programs designed to empower operating room (OR) teams,  Medline Industries, Inc. is introducing a number of innovative OR solutions designed to improve OR safety at the 59th annual AORN Congress.

Preventing medical errors and improving the quality of care is our paramount goal, says Kim Haines, RN, certified OR Nurse, vice president of clinical resources for Medline. Through extensive customer insights, research and new technologies, we have developed several new solutions to help medical staff improve patient safety and outcomes.

Among the new products Medline (Booth #3407) will introduce and demonstrate at AORN this week are:
 PerfecTemp The PerfecTemp OR table pad, which uniquely incorporates both pressure-reducing high-tech material to reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers and a warming system to combat hypothermia, a dangerous, yet common surgical complication associated with higher mortality rates, longer hospital stays and an increased rate of wound infection.
 PerforMAX pOweR scrubs the healthcare industrys first-ever line of long-sleeved scrubs to help reduce the risk of infection by providing a protective barrier between the patient and a healthcare workers bare arms, which can transmit bacteria. PerforMAX complies with new guidelines from the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which now require many members of OR teams to wear long-sleeved jackets for the first time.
 IRiS a mobile UV-C (high-intensity ultraviolet light) room disinfection system that has been shown to dramatically reduce pathogens found on surfaces within health care settings.
 Octylseal tissue adhesive an innovative new wound closure tissue adhesive that provides a strong and safe alternative to topical sutures. Octylseal is also used as a microbial barrier or dressing. Octylseal can help reduce the time patients spend in the operating and emergency room and eliminate several challenges, such as surgical site trauma, inflammation, and other complications often seen with traditional suturing.
 Vaso-Force DVT prophylaxis pumps and garments Medlines newest compression therapy solutions for deep vein thrombosis (DVT).  Medline is the only company to offer all three of the most common compression solutions: intermittent, sequential and static non-mechanical compression with EMS compression stockings. Medlines air compression garments are lined with tricot, a soft and breathable knit material that helps promote compliance and reduce the risk of skin breakdown and pressure ulcers. 
 Signature Glide surgeons gloves Medlines new Signature Glide glove features an inner gel coating made from hydrophilic synthetic polymer that allows hands to glide effortlessly into the glove whether the hands are wet or dry.