FEMTO FACTOR

Getting your office and surgical teams on board with LACS

Staff involvement is key to getting your femto strategy on the right track.

By Scott LaBorwit, MD

You’ve taken the leap and have made the decision committing to LACS — laser-assisted cataract surgery. But what about everyone around you? Your staff may not initially share same enthusiasm. Wait until your OR nurses hear that you want to change the surgical flow and add another procedure before you do phaco!

When you examine your patients, will they be able to process even more information at the preoperative appointment? Will they claim they thought that cataract surgery already was laser surgery?

It is very important that your patients and staff both understand why you believe in the technology so they can actively participate in the process. It is incumbent on you to educate your team, actively involving them in the process changes so they can fully understand your decision to adopt this new technology. With the proper preparation, both your office staff and OR team will remain positive and efficient

GETTING STAFF ON BOARD

Of course the office staff needs to get on board with LACS early. While you may be eager to present LACS to your patients, your staff may only hear yet another “thing” they have to talk to patients about. They may see this change as adding a burden to their already busy day, requiring another appointment to schedule, more complicated billing issues to contend with and ultimately slowing down the flow of the office.

Keeping the message positive is critical to successfully implementing LACS in your practice. In fact, this is a great opportunity to let your staff know just how important they are in caring for your patients.

In my office, we did several “lunch and learns” to educate our employees about the technology. It seems that staff can always digest the information better around food. Explain why you believe LACS will benefit patient outcomes and how it will also distinguish your practice in the community as one committed to technology. My staff appreciated the attention and quickly developed an enthusiasm for LACS.

PUT THEM ALL IN THE OR

Part of the education process included rotating the entire office staff, over several days, into the laser room and OR to observe the entire patient experience. Many of our employees have been with the practice for more than five years and had never seen a cataract operation or even been to the surgical center.

We were sorry we hadn’t done this sooner, because it is important for your office staff to see this “surgical side” of the practice. Even billing personnel lingered around the OR longer, not wanting to leave. Each employee had a fresh outlook on the practice and fully understood why we decided to use LACS.

Key staff members also need to help design how to best educate patients. They are crucial at developing the elements of patient flow through the office and creating the proper roles for other employees in providing care and education for patients with regard to the new technology. This helps create your own in-house ambassadors for the new technology, exponentially increasing the enthusiasm in the office.

BE FLEXIBLE

The ASC is full of systems and protocols, and the nurses’ job is to keep the environment safe for patient care. Be careful to respect this as you design a plan for your surgical day.

Take the time to meet with the OR staff and anesthesia beyond just quick conversations in the hallway. Allow them to ask questions and help decide the best place for the laser and how to design patient flow.

Another facet to consider in your ASC is the concerns of economic impact on revenue resulting from a risk of a potentially reduced volume of cases by adding the FS laser prior to phaco. This may also result in increased in staff and equipment costs.

Understand that everyone needs to be flexible, including the physicians. I modified my surgical schedule several times as we adjusted to the new workflow.

Keep in mind that not everyone may be ready for change as quickly as you. I encountered this resistance first-hand when my new electronic convertible chair-stretcher, remote control included, finally arrived and, to my surprise, found it was parked by the nurses in the patient bathroom.

With engagement, your OR team will quickly understand the surgical impact inherent in the advanced technology and subsequently respect your decision to strive for better and safer patient outcomes. OM

Scott LaBorwit, MD, is a principal at Select Eye Care, with locations in Towson and Elkridge, Md., and is an assistant professor, part-time faculty, at Wilmer Eye Clinic of Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore. His e-mail is Sel104@me.com. Disclosures: Dr. LaBorwit is a consultant to and speaker for Alcon.