Anesthesia Practice Management Blogs
As long as drug hazards exist for patients everywhere, improving medication management should be an ongoing priority for any anesthesia department. The Institute of Medicine has estimated that each year medication errors injure at least 1.5 million Americans and cost the health care system more than $3.5 billion. Not only do anesthesia providers have to…
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After working in anesthesia practice management since 2004, we have found a common theme in underperforming surgical departments—poor leadership. While it may be easier to point the finger at an individual surgical team member or place blame on other departments for issues like slow room turnover, high complication rates, case cancellations or low morale, the…
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Medication and controlled substance management is a core premise of anesthesia care. Even though new technological advancements have made it harder for drug abuse, drug diversion, dosing errors, labeling errors and other issues to become problems, it is still up to anesthesia providers to remain vigilant in preventing medication mismanagement. Understanding the most common issues…
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Stakes are high in the perioperative suite. In fact, it is plausible to believe that they could not possibly be any higher, given that patients’ lives are at stake. When seconds count, communication is critical. Communication is also vital in avoiding surgical delays, turning over rooms quickly and keeping departments staffed optimally. Whether the scenario…
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The delivery of quality anesthesia care involves much more than anesthetizing patients. Anesthesiologists and CRNAs are part of perioperative teams working together to achieve safe, productive and efficient work environments. Effective leadership is critical to the success of an anesthesia department. At CCI Anesthesia, our goal is to develop anesthesia leaders who go above and…
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The purpose of informed consent forms (not to be confused with provider attestation forms) is to ensure the patient clearly understands the risks, benefits, alternatives, risks of alternatives, and, in some form, the likelihood of success. These items are present in the Joint Commission standards, but aside from the standards, the intent of informed consent…
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At CCI Anesthesia, our goal is to pull back the curtain on anesthesia practice management and provide transparency for our clients. When talking with prospective clients we hear many questions about transitioning to a new anesthesia practice management group, and we are always happy to answer them. Maximizing operational and cost efficiencies for hospitals and…
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Medical direction is a common staffing model for anesthesia departments, but is your department in compliance when billing under this model? Although, in essence, medical direction simply means that an anesthesiologist is directing the delivery of anesthesia care from up to four CRNAs, there are actually several stipulations that must be met to ensure compliance.…
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Whether you are an anesthesiologist or Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), preparing for a job interview is a worthwhile endeavor. Making a stellar first impression is important and knowing what to expect in your interview can help. Anesthesia job interview questions are much different than typical job interview questions. In addition to answering typical interview…
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Routine meetings in any department are imperative in order to function as a team and perform at an optimal level. The effective use of meetings is especially important when the department exists within a high-stress, fast-paced environment, as the Anesthesia Department does in the Operating Room (OR). Although the anesthesia service is not technically a…
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