Ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) play a pivotal role in delivering efficient and specialized care within the larger healthcare landscape. With this in mind, ASCs are looking to increase the number of high acuity, high reimbursement procedures - like cardiac and orthopedic - to their centers. Adding to the growth potential, Center’s for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has unexpectedly started expanding the ASC-covered procedures list. Today more than ever attracting and retaining skilled ASC staff is essential to growth strategies.
This article will explore:
- Challenges to ASC Staff Recruitment and Retention
- The Role of Medical Equipment in Staff Recruitment and Retention
- Medical Equipment for Efficiency
- Medical Equipment for Safety
Challenges to ASC Staff Recruitment and Retention
Healthcare in general has a reputation for long hours and high-stress environments. These factors contribute to staff burnout and atmospheres of dissatisfaction but providing medical equipment to help improve efficiency and staff safety can help alleviate some of the stress. By reducing the stress associated with workflow inefficiency (exacerbated by staffing shortages) and preemptively addressing strain injuries with advanced medical equipment ASCs can better position themselves in the highly competitive healthcare labor market.
Role of Medical Equipment in ASC Staff Recruitment and Retention
Medical equipment can help bring patient care to the next level and significantly impacts the ability of an ASC to attract and retain staff. Seeking out medical equipment equipped with advanced technology and engineered with staff safety can be an integral part of streamlining processes, reducing errors, and creating a work environment “where outstanding healthcare and fulfilling career paths flourish together.”1.
By incorporating carefully selected medical equipment into daily operations, ASCs cultivate environments that demonstrate Administration is committed to prioritizing the well-being of staff. Word travels fast when staff choose to remain with a facility because they feel valued…. and that has the serendipity of attracting other medical professionals.
Medical Equipment for Efficiency in an ASC
Medical equipment serves a variety of purposes in the ASC environment. One often forgotten function is its role in streamlining workflows for efficiency.
Here is a sampling of medical equipment commonly used in ASCs that can have a big impact on daily workflows.
Warming Cabinets: Properly sized warming cabinets in strategic locations minimize time.
Carts: Stocked with medical essentials and equipped with carefully chosen accessories, medical carts help increase efficiency by housing everything for a specific purpose in one, mobile location. No more wasted steps looking for supplies or equipment.
Vital signs Monitors: Wall-mounted or mobile vital signs monitors all but eliminate the need to find and retrieve devices. Connections to EHRs offer the added efficiency of eliminating the need to manually record vitals.
Scales: Connections with EHRs improve workflow by recording important weight measurements in real time, making the data immediately available to medical staff.
Work-Station-on-Wheels (WOWs) bring essential patient information to caregivers, where they need it.
Top Rack Storage: Organized, accessible supplies are a cornerstone of efficiency.
Transport/OR Tables (stretcher chair): Stretcher chairs eliminate the time-consuming tasks of lifting and moving a patient multiple times ahead of surgery.
Real Time Location Systems (RTLS): Asset tagging eliminates the inefficiencies associated with “tracking down” equipment and devices needed for patient care.
The need for medical equipment that facilitates efficient workflows has never been more critical. Despite focused staff recruitment initiatives, many ASCs are still experiencing staffing shortages. It is imperative that the professionals who are staffing shifts have the equipment to offset inefficiencies caused by understaffing. Compounding the problem is the increased risk of injury as the medical staff of a busy ASC, in many cases, care for more than the normal number of patients during a shift.
Medical Equipment for ASC Staff Safety
Medical equipment available today not only facilities efficiency but is frequently ergonomically engineered and equipped with features to minimize associated and potentially costly injuries by lessening the physical strain on staff.
The same medical equipment that fosters streamlined workflow can also help minimize staff injury. Here is how the same sample of efficiency promoting medical equipment can help improve staff safety.
Carts: Medical carts are lightweight, easily moveable, and ergonomically engineered to decrease fatigue, stress, and injuries caused by excessive bending, twisting, pushing, and pulling.
Top Track Storage: Top track storage is designed around ergonomic principles to prevent overstocking and organize inventory for safe retrieval.
Transport/OR Tables: Stretcher chairs reduce the opportunity for back strain injuries by eliminating the need to lift and move patients from hospital beds to stretchers then to operating room tables and back again.
UV-C Disinfection: UV-C disinfection kills bacteria at the DNA level which adds another layer of protection for staff against HAIs.
RTLS: The same technology that tracks medical equipment can also be used to protect medical staff through wearable personal distress buttons.
Medical equipment can contribute to staff safety and improve workflow efficiency which, in turn, fosters work environments conducive to staff retention. By extension, ASCs with high employee retention rates are attractive to the skilled healthcare professionals necessary for the growth of Ambulatory Surgery Centers.
Partnering with the right medical equipment distributor can streamline the procurement process, leaving medical professionals free to care for patients.
Partner with CME for Medical Equipment
As a nationally recognized medical equipment distributor and the only one focused solely on medical equipment, CME has built relationships with industry leading manufacturers.
Our expert account managers will work with you and the manufacturers’ representatives help select medical equipment to streamline processes and minimize injury to staff.
Complementing CME’s focus on medical equipment are order management, direct-to-site delivery, and biomedical services. We are the only medical equipment distributor nationwide able to say we are truly a one-stop-shop.
Order Management Services
Our single point of contact order management team can take the some of the stress out of medical equipment procurement by working with facility administrators, procurement professionals, and manufacturers to ensure delivery dates are met and any issue that arise are resolved.
Direct-To-Site Logistics and Delivery Services
In addition to delivering medical equipment fully assembled when it is convenient for staff and clients, CME Direct-to-Site services can help take the stress out of large orders by receiving, inspecting and warehousing the order(s) for a single delivery. Our Direct-to-Site teams will deliver assembled medical equipment to service locations in the facility and remove all packing debris, so the equipment is ready for immediate use.
Biomedical Services
Biomedical services have been at the heart of CME for over forty-five years. We are the only medical equipment distributor nationwide with an in-house team of biomedical technicians available to perform asset tagging, asset validation, hospital bed check-in, preventative maintenance, and repair.
Click CHAT to begin a conversation about your medical equipment needs.
1. Andrey Ibragimov, BSN, RN director at Ingalls ASC. https://www.beckersasc.com/leadership/asc-execs-are-bullish-on-growth-here-are-5-strategies-on-their-radar.html?origin=ASCE&utm_source=ASCE&utm_medium=email&utm_content=newsletter&oly_enc_id=5445F0844812J4Z
About CME: CME Corp is the nation’s premier source for healthcare equipment, turnkey logistics, and biomedical services, representing 2 million+ products from more than 2,000 manufacturers. With two corporate offices and 35+ service centers, our mission is to help healthcare facilities nationwide reduce the cost of the equipment they purchase, make their equipment specification, delivery, installation, and maintenance processes more efficient, and help them seamlessly launch, renovate and expand on schedule.
