Electro Lube and the Great Collaboration: OR and SPD

03.01.2022 • Industry News

We're seeing it happen more frequently than ever before; initiatives requiring cross-disciplinary collaboration creating impactful, meaningful change in the operating room and sterile processing. While we're not in a utopian state just yet (spoiler alert: there will always be opportunities for improvement) we wanted to share the experience of two healthcare professionals working in different departments (the OR and SPD) who rely on the same product (Electro Lube) to provide different solutions to challenges in their departments. Electro Lube™ is an anti-stick solution for electrosurgery that plays an important role in time/cost management during a procedure and likewise has had a positive impact on the process of cleaning the instrumentation in sterile processing for subsequent use.

Claudia, Robotics Coordinator, and Collette, SPD Manager/Educator, work together at a state-of-the art hospital in St. Paul, MN. Having worked together for over 30 years, they both agree that mutual understanding, respect for each other's department, and collaboration is the recipe for success. Here is one of the most recent examples of their collaboration to overcome a challenge related to electrosurgical instrumentation.

Q: What were the challenges you were experiencing and how did they impact your daily practice?
Claudia (SPD): At least 1-2 times a week we would have to call up to the OR because of eschar on the Da Vinci instruments. The manual cleaning process kept being prolonged because the techs were spending a lot of time trying remove the char.
Collette (OR): anything? Check the transcript to see if there was something specific from Collette for this answer

Q: How did you hear about Electro Lube? 
Collette (OR): We recently purchased an Intuitive Da Vinci Xi System and some of our staff visited one of our affiliated hospitals already performing robotic procedures to observe some cases there and understand best practices. We noticed this substance being used (Electro Lube) and were curious about it. 
Claudia (SPD): I was talking with my Key Surgical sales rep about the challenges of reprocessing Da Vinci instruments and the condition they were in coming down from the OR. The sales rep mentioned other Customers who were using Electro Lube and their experience seeing a reduction in the char left on the instrument; making life easier for the SPD technician. 

Q: What was the trial and evaluation process for Electro Lube at your hospital? 
Collette (OR): After seeing it in use, we were curious to see how it would work for us. It's not a difficult product to use so our trial/evaluation wasn't very formal. We agreed to give it a try; the ease of use was a factor as well. It's a minor step to add to the overall procedure.
Claudia (SPD): Since the product was already in the purchasing system with other Key Surgical products, our policy is we can just go ahead and use it, so no trial was needed. There was no need to go through Value Analysis Committee (VAC) in this instance.

Q: What was your experience like during the trial?
Claudia (SPD): After the OR started to use Electro Lube routinely, we saw less eschar buildup on the instruments, which made it easier for reprocessing in decontam. It also prevented surgeons from scraping the instruments with a scalpel to remove the buildup, which still makes my spine chill. Eschar just doesn't adhere to the instruments like before when they weren’t using it.
Collette (OR): We weren't getting calls from SPD anymore about hard-to-remove eshcar. We even found that intraoperatively it’s easier to wipe the instruments clean with Electro Lube, and then the surgeon just re-applies it.

Q: In what types of cases do you typically use Electro Lube?
Claudia (OR): We perform a lot of robotic prostate cases (8-10 per week) and there is typically a lot of cautery and charring. We noticed the improvement with Electro Lube in these cases right away. It's on our pick-list so we use it for every Da Vinci case as well. 
Collette (SPD): Typically it's being used for Da Vinci instruments. It works so well on the hot shears and Maryland bipolar forceps, but it would be good for hook and spatula cauteries in the laparoscopic cases.

Q: How has Electro Lube impacted your daily practice?
Claudia (OR): It saves time, cost, and frustration. Both departments (SPD and OR) take pride in how we take care of instruments, and we all take ownership, so we realized it's working better and it’s a win-win for both sides. Those robotic instruments are so expensive, and we have posters up in the OR reminding everyone of this, so Electro Lube helps us to avoid the scraping that damages the instruments.
Collette (SPD): Our process for cleaning Da Vinci instruments is about 95 minutes, and we could cut 10-15 minutes off of it. It helps reduce damage because we are now simply using brushes to clean and not trying to scrape the instrument.

Q: Overall, how does your hospital facilitate this type of collaboration between the OR and Sterile Processing departments?
Claudia (OR): Number one, it’s mutual respect and valuing each other's input. I understand Collette and her staff’s frustrations and we are willing to try anything because we know how hard they work. Sterile processing is not an easy job.
Collette (SPD): Claudia and I have a great working relationship after having worked together for 30 years and we are both passionate about what we do. We have monthly meetings between departments and the Director joins our daily huddles, so we all had knowledge of what’s going on in each department.