Conduct garbage rounds
We call them garbage rounds. Twice a year, we ask our staff to save instead of discard unused those items that were in their packs. We'll check every day for a month what's being thrown away and them eliminate them from the packs. It might be a little thing, like towels or drapes or suture bags or an extra sheet. At month's end, we'll call the vendor and change the pack. We've found this strategy saves a lot of money. Because surgeons aren't using the items, they're not likely to even notice what's no longer in the pack.
Cheryl Wolf, RN, BS, CNOR
Director, Perioperative Services
Irvington General Hospital
Irvington, N.J.
writeMail("cwolf@sbhcs.com")
