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Tag: environment

A Different Kind of Travel List

By Divya Singh, MD I put down the deposit last week. I had checked cancellation policies and insurance coverage before booking the trip to the Pantanal. 2020 has been challenging for everyone; traveling has been one of many casualties. The year started out well enough—snorkeling and paddling at an eco-resort in Panama in January, the World Ice Art […]

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Improved Conservation

By Jennifer F. Waljee, MD In this new decade, it is critical to identify pragmatic strategies to reduce, reuse, and recycle in Hand Surgery in order to reduce healthcare expenditures and our environmental footprint. Surgery is one of the highest consumers of supplies and energy in healthcare, and also one of the largest generators of […]

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Hand Surgeons Must Help

By James E. Clune, MD When we think of conservation in the operating room, time is our commodity. We try to limit turnover between cases, we make sure consents and equipment lists are ready at the time of the booking. During the procedure we limit the amount of excess motion in our hands and only […]

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The Environment May Have Recognized You but You Didn’t Recognize It

By Michael G. Galvez, MD We must consider the environment in our field of hand and upper extremity. Why? Believing that the United States has unlimited resources is a contributing factor to why our healthcare system is broken. A broken healthcare system that prioritizes patients with health insurance results in delayed care for many patients. […]

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We Can and Should

By Ioannis P. Pappou, MD, PhD The answer to the former question is simple: Yes, there is a place for conservation and the effort needs to be increased significantly. The answer to the latter question is more complicated. We live in a wasteful era and the American society does not prioritize the environment. Unfortunately, we […]

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Global Conservation

By Cary Tanner, MD Dr. Lutsky posed the above question for consideration in ASSH Perspectives. Anyone can correct me if I am wrong, but I propose that the best model for conservation is one in which the human spirit is unfettered with regulation, government survey standards, the specter of liability, and where financial support is […]

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Lean and Green Hand Surgery: What Can You Do?

By Robert E. Van Demark, Jr., MD It is estimated that the US healthcare system generates 4 billion tons of waste annually (6600 tons per day). Hospital operating rooms account for approximately 25-35 % of all hospital waste and are responsible for nearly 56% of total hospital costs. Orthopedic surgery is one of the largest […]

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If You Don’t Open It, You Can’t Throw It Away

By Jeffrey C. Wint, MD As surgeons we all too well know how our patient’s individual health history and status affects results. Even a perfect operation, in the most technically skilled hands, is no match for the poor general health of a patient. Similarly, the environment plays a distinct role on our patient’s health. Lack […]

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