VA NY Harbor Healthcare System

How is he doing? “Fantastic!” answers 8-year Army Veteran Harry Morales. At 72, looking years younger, he looks forward to resuming scuba diving with sharks and barracudas. This was something that until very recently, he could not even consider because he was in so much pain and his leg was so stiff following a left knee replacement nine years ago.

A diagnosis by Orthopedic Surgeon Ajit Deshmukh, MD, revealed that Morales was allergic to his knee prosthesis, which was made of nickel. Once Dr. Deshmukh removed the artificial knee and replaced it with one made of another material, Morales’ recovery has been quick, assisted by consistent physical therapy. “Now, I’m 95 percent recovered,” says Morales, who never anticipated he would be in such good shape. “He did a great job. I was in constant pain. I was depressed. My marriage was on the rocks because I was always angry,” says Morales, who recently stopped by the hospital with his wife to say hello to Dr. Desmukh and tell him how well he’s doing. A knee revision is a very complex operation and infection is among many potential complications. Success is due to surgical skills, the expertise of nursing staff and also to the “behind the scenes” activities of the nursing administration of the OR.

How is VA so successful at treating patients? Much credit goes to the Operating Room Nursing Staff. More specifically, it’s the Nursing staff and the skill and expertise they provide when assisting as part of a surgical team that are necessary and key elements for an operation to be successful. The skills and commitment of the Sterile Processing Service staff also ensure maximum protection against infection.

At VA NY Harbor Healthcare System, the person who oversees the planning and implementation of surgical support, ensuring, for example that every instrument a surgeon needs is in place on time, is Navy Veteran Stanley Read, RN. He has been a leader of OR procedure at the Harbor for almost 30 years. Read first served in Brooklyn. He deployed with Desert Storm and also served in Iraq, assigned to medical support to a Marine Corps battalion. In 2005, he returned to VA, based this time in the OR at VA’s Manhattan Campus.

 

Read acknowledges his strength is understanding the need for planning and being able to support his nursing staff in the broad range of tasks that spell readiness for a surgical preparation. This challenge involves coordinating with Sterile Processing Service, prosthetics and logistics so that when a surgeon requires an instrument or another item needed for a procedure, it is there available for use. He is also responsible for ensuring the training, competency, and performance of the OR staff. In addition, he works with the surgeons to ensure that the operating room schedule is balanced and realistic.

“Stanley Read is hands down the best manager I have ever worked with. The main reason we get all these advanced cases done is him. He has an amazing “can do” attitude. He is enthusiastic, hardworking and knowledgeable. Every single instrument and every complicated case we asked for, he provided us with support.” says Babak Givi, MD, Director of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, who has been performing extremely complex operations since he began working at the Harbor three years ago.

 

“Since I started we have done free tissue transfer, transoral laser tumor excisions and endoscopic skull base surgery. All of these require delicate, specific instruments. Multiple surgical teams are involved and many companies have to be contacted to obtain the equipment. Stanley gets it done.

What amazes me that he is so curious and always wants to learn. He always ask questions and wants to learn what we are doing and why we nee a specific equipment. He always puts patients first. We admitted a patient with an advanced larynx cancer this week. The tumor was nearly obstructing his throat and he could hardly breathe. We needed to do an urgent procedure. Usually we do a temporary tracheostomy first to open the airway and then perform the definitive surgery to remove the tumor. I asked Stanley if we could do everything in one stage. That meant that we had to add this case to our other previously scheduled surgeries. He only asked, ‘what do you need?’ He mobilized the operating room, made sure everything was available and got it done.

Not only we didn’t cancel any cases, but we performed a four hour operation after our usual cases to remove the tumor and provide this Veteran with definitive treatment in one surgery.

 

When the Veterans thank me, I wish they knew that I am able to help them, because one of their own is helping me. He makes a huge difference.”