orm_may-2024 - 1

MAY
2024
Volume 40
Number 5
Education and information for OR decision makers
LEADERSHIP
IN THIS ISSUE
INDUSTRY BEATS
Surface disinfection: How to play
your cards right with UVC light .......6
Recognize, report, prevent:
Building accountability for
workplace violence .......................8
Reader's choice: OR am top
read stories ...............................10
SPECIALTY STORIES
Unveiling ECRI's 2024 top 10
patient safety concerns list .........20
ASC staffing woes persist in era of
increased surgical volume ...........24
IMPORTANT
ANNOUNCEMENT
The 2024 Salary/
Career Survey is open!
If you need to stop the survey
partway, simply close the last
complete page and return to it
using the initial link/QR code.
Your responses will be saved!
SCAN TO COMPLETE
key part of an OR leader's responsibility
is to help team
members succeed. Leaders do
that by setting expectations and providing
support on a regular basis, particularly
when an employee is not functioning
effectively. However, a leader
sometimes has no other option but to
terminate a problem employee.
As detailed in the first part of this
article (the previous cover story in this
issue), employee competence and
behavior problems cannot be left to
fester. However, empathy is critical,
even when the remediation strategies
detailed in that article fail. Most employees
are not prepared for this final
A
BY CYNTHIA SAVER
Managing challenging employees: How
to help
n today's perioperative environment,
every staff member is precious.
Even for ORs not facing personnel
shortages already, the loss of even one
person could significantly burden the
remaining staff. This situation makes
dealing with challenging employees difficult.
When is investing time in resolving
the issue worthwhile? At what point
should a leader let go-and let the employee
go?
I
Barring egregious behavior such as
stealing or drug diversion, interviews
with several OR leaders and an HR expert
indicate that these decisions can
LEADERSHIP
BY CYNTHIA SAVER
Managing challenging employees: When
to let go
stage even if they are aware of the
problem. " You want to speak with them
in a kind, respectful way, " says Tammy
Straub, MSN, RN, APRN, CNOR. As administrator
of perioperative services at
Lehigh Valley Health Network, a 13-hospital
system in Allentown, Pennsylvania,
where she oversees ORs at 13 hospitals
(including a level 1 trauma center)
and three surgery centers, she takes
care to recognize that an employee " is
a human being. We're affecting their
livelihood. "
Other points of advice from OR leaders
relate to the timing of the meeting,
who needs to be there, and what
Continued on page 6
Continued on page 16
be complicated. Besides knowing when
to terminate an employee, OR leaders
must consider the reasons for problematic
behavior, provide support, and otherwise
manage personnel challenges.
Is the problem a competency issue or a
behavioral issue? Can it be corrected-
and is the employee interested in correcting
it? What is the best remedy?
Where can a leader find support?
Finding the right answers is critical
to the well-being of everyone in the OR,
including the staff, the patients, and
the managers asking the questions.
Continued on page 13
https://www.ormanager.com/ https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Z383VML
orm_may-2024

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