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Monday May 5
Afternoon
IAHCSMM 2008 Annual Meeting: Online Report
Joint Board Meeting with Membership(EBoard Business Meeting) STERIS Luncheon
11:45am – 1:45pm
General Session
2:00pm – 3:15pm
Law & Ethics
Speaker: Sherri Alexander
(see adjacent report to your right)
Break
3:15pm – 3:30pm
General Session
3:30pm – 4:45pm
Central Processing: An Evolving Role in Today’s Healthcare Environment
Speaker: Thomas Winthrop
Membership/Chapter Open Forum
5:00pm – 6:00pm Existing Members & Chapters and a Welcome to New IAHCSMM Members (including former ASHCSP Members& Chapters)
Law and Ethics
Healthcare workers should know that there are certain laws and ethics that impact their profession and the way they practice in the healthcare organization. But some may not be fully aware of just how far some of these laws have come and how certain ethical beliefs may affect the workplace (and how they can also place surgical services professionals and their employers in hot water if they aren't careful).
Sherri Alexander, CST, CRCST, clinical coordinator for Clarian Health System in Indianapolis, outlined the various laws that have changed in recent decades and how each has shaped the workplace in their own way. And keeping in step with the speakers who preceded her, she managed to tackle a serious, weighty topic with good humor and wry wit.
She discussed the origins of a number of laws and standards in place today (including workplace safety acts and labor and employment laws), confidentiality requirements (and the need for healthcare workers to “keep it quiet” about the goings on in the operating room), informed consent, and laws pertaining to negligence (referencing the Four Ds: Duty; Derelict; Direct Cause; and Damage).
Aside from regulations and standards, Alexander also stressed the importance of good moral values and judgment. She pointed out that approximately 27 million people undergo surgeries every year, with roughly 500,000 of those resulting in surgical site infections (which have been found to prolong length of stay by 16 days and increase costs by six times the original amount).
“I think this number will come down if we can all just remember that we are part of that critical triangle of care. We have to work as a team to keep the sides of that triangle from collapsing.” She went on to say that as professionals, we may sometimes get a bit too comfortable or complacent in our day to day duties.
“But that is negligent and unethical. We need to think about cross-contamination and how our actions affect our patients and even our families,” she stressed, pointing to potentially dangerous missteps like wearing contaminated clothing home and failing to wash hands or don/remove gloves, as needed. “Should our patients really have to remind us to wash our hands and [do the right thing]?”
