Now more than ever the time has come to increase the visibility of the Surgical Assistant in the operating room. With all of the new changes that will be coming down from Washington and Obama-care (whatever they may be), and healthcare reform in the forefront of the public eye, we need to ensure that all Certified Surgical First Assistants join in the efforts of NSAA and AST/ASA to include the CSA, CFA, and SA-C in the reform process. As I read through the new December issue of the NSAA Node this evening, I agreed strongly with David Jennette that we should all be making a concerted effort to be active in our organizations. For those of us who are members of NSAA, we are aware of their push to have all members join the American College of Surgeons as Affiliate members. I would like to take this opportunity to also encourage fellow CFAs and our SA-C friends to do likewise. There are the obvious benefits to joining ACS, like the journal and their great website archives, but more than that, joining ACS is a great way to increase the visibility of the profession and let other healthcare providers and the public know who we are and what we do. Part of the three-fold mission of my website is Unity. Getting us all on the same page with ACS is a great step in that direction. We all need to step up to the plate and do our part to make certain that we, as a profession, succeed and muscle through these challenging and uncertain times in our nation. It is easy for us to sit back and become complacent in the face of hard work, and I have seen a lot of us doing just that by wondering how we are going to jump ship and go into other professions when things get tougher. This is a battle we can and will win, but it takes time. We need to realize that ours is one of the newest career fields in healthcare, and look how far we have come! We need to stop moaning about the way things are, and go out and help this profession to become what we want it to be. So let’s become more involved! If you’re a member of NSAA, you can become a Regional Ambassador and serve at the state or national level by completing the form in the December Node (see attached link below). And if you are a CFA or SA-C, join ASA and see what you can do to help increase our visibility. Every little bit counts.
The possibility of public health emergencies arising in the United States concerns many people in the wake of recent hurricanes, tsunamis, acts of terrorism, and the threat of pandemic influenza. Though some people feel it is impossible to be prepared for unexpected events, the truth is that taking preparedness actions helps people deal with disasters of all sorts much more effectively when they do occur.
Ever wonder how to make a difference in your overall health without drastically changing your lifestyle? Here are some ideas to get you on the path to healthier living:
Read Health & Fitness Tips ”10 Essential Health Tips (The Basics to Practice Everyday)” here.
Invented by Professor John R. Adler of Stanford University, and Peter and Russell Schonberg of Schonberg Research Corporation, the Cyberknife Robotic Radiosurgery System has revolutionized the non-invasive treatment of both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors within the body. Areas that can be treated using Cyberknife technology include the prostate, lung, brain, spine, liver, pancreas and kidney. Using extremely accurate beams of high dose radiation, Cyberknife has opened up treatment options for patients suffering with surgically complex or inoperable tumors.
What are your thoughts on the advancements in robotic surgery over the past two decades? We have seen the advent of many new and impressive technologies from robotic assisting arms and the DaVinci system, to other minimally invasive robitic surgical techniques. How do you feel that these new technologies will affect allied healthcare providers in the operating room?
Read more:
Watch the video on OR Live:
CyberKnife Offers Cancer Patients New Treatment Options
Frequent hand washing is one of the best ways to avoid getting sick and spreading illness. Hand washing requires only soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer — a cleanser that doesn’t require water. Find out when and how to wash your hands properly. Read the article from the Mayo Clinic. Print this handy hand washing poster from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services.
Image from http://www.hcvadvocate.org/news/newsLetter/2008/handwashing.jpg
For a limited time, MD Publishing is giving out free subscriptions to OR Today magazine. I am not sure how long the subscriptions are for, however no billing information is requested at the time of subscription so it will not automatically renew. Here is the link: http://www.mdpublishing.com/subscription.aspx.
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The latest installment in the ASA News has just been received. Highlights of this issue include a summary of the ASA 2009 Surgical Assistant Salary Survey. The results have been broken down by specific credential as well as by the length of time individuals have been in the field. Thanks again to ASA for embarking on this endeavor. Finally, we have a little bit more concise data to refer to when seeking information regarding pay in our industry. Also in this issue, Kathy Duffy, CST, CFA continues with part 2 of her series “Congratulations! You’re a CFA: Now What?” This article provides a great overview of some of the challenges facing new SFAs and how to overcome them. There is also some really great information regarding billing in this edition that will clear the water a bit and benefit us all. Thanks goes out to Tom VanRoekel, CFA, for putting more clear billing information at our fingertips.
Also, I’d like take a moment and say that I think that AST has made a bold and positive move with the current restructuring of the Association of Surgical Assistants. I think that this is a move that is long over due in our profession. I believe the creation of a separate and autonomous organization specifically designed for the Nonphysician Surgical Assistant regardless of professional credential is definitely a step in the right direction for the future and viability of our profession. All of us, regardless of which credential we hold, should join the bandwagon. The only way to get this profession to the level that it needs to be at is through visibility. The time for us to sit back and blend in to the crowd while small select groups of our peers take on the tough topics facing our profession is over. All of us need to contribute to this effort in some way. I am not saying that we should leave our current alliances behind (whether they be AST, NSAA, or some other organization), I am saying the time has come to join together to take the legislators, the nurses, the hospitals, and the public head-on in our fight to attain a level playing field at the OR table.
I came accross this while researching legislation in my state. This document from the CA Department of Consumer Affairs lays out a scope of practice and what the California Board of Nursing refers to as “Standardized Procedures.” I especially liked the reference to “scrub technicians” on the first page. http://www.rn.ca.gov/pdfs/regulations/npr-b-18.pdf
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