Taylor Swift in the Cath Lab? Music in the Cath Lab Debate

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Does music play during procedures in your lab? Who chooses the music?

A recent study published in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal found that "when plastic surgeons listen to music they prefer, their surgical technique and efficiency when closing incisions is improved," says a University of Texas Medical Branch press release.

While many studies have been conducted supporting the idea that music reduces stress and promotes efficiency for operating room staff, this study adds to a more limited evidence base that suggests music can improve technical performance and speed of a procedure.

Why does it matter? Reducing the time of a procedure can lead to significant cost savings, of course, and in cardiac emergencies where "time is muscle," promoting procedure efficiency is key to providing quality care.

But should the cardiologist control music in the cath lab?

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A Clinical Ladder in the Procedural Setting

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Are you climbing the clinical ladder?

Often in clinical settings, there are limited opportunities for upward mobility. In fact, the clinical "ladder" in your organization might be a single position---Team Leader---or you might not be climbing at all.

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Cath Lab Team Building @ RMH

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

In part one of our profile of Sentara Rockingham Memorial Hospital's cardiac team, we discussed how team members stepped up to to continue activating STEMI from the field and reduce the rate of false calls by educating local EMS. In this post, we'll look at Sentara RMH as an example of excellent cath lab team building from a management perspective.

How do you go about cath lab team building? You could start by getting the team out of the lab, as cardiac operations manager Linwood Williams argues.

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Working in the Cath Lab Causes Heart Disease

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Radiation Safety (Still) Matters

In February, ACVP blog reported on a survey that showed non-physician Cath Lab employees, ACVP members, reporting higher levels of musculoskeletal pain due to radiation exposure and lead apron use.

In April, SCAI released a membership survey with almost 50 percent of responders reporting orthopedic injuries, and there has been "no discernible improvement" since a similar survey was collected in 2004.

There's more bad news. A new study published this week links radiation in the Cath Lab to subclinical atherosclerosis. That's right, working in the Cath Lab can cause cardiovascular disease.

The study calculated a radiological risk score based on proximity to radiation source, caseload, and the length of employment, and there was a significant correlation between this measure and carotid intima-media thickness on the left side, not on the right, which provides "further support for a causal connection."

What's being done?

Continue reading Working in the Cath Lab Causes Heart Disease

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