1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,240 Hi, everyone. This is Lucas Voss with Becker's 2 00:00:02,240 --> 00:00:03,679 Healthcare. Thanks so much for tuning in to 3 00:00:03,679 --> 00:00:06,559 the Becker's Healthcare podcast series. Today, we're going 4 00:00:06,559 --> 00:00:09,759 to talk about rethinking surgical operations and how 5 00:00:09,759 --> 00:00:11,380 health systems can optimize 6 00:00:11,919 --> 00:00:12,419 performance. 7 00:00:13,074 --> 00:00:14,755 And I'm so very excited to be joined 8 00:00:14,755 --> 00:00:16,994 by John Mahoney. Very excited to have you 9 00:00:16,994 --> 00:00:20,035 here, chief product officer at Pristine Surgical. John, 10 00:00:20,035 --> 00:00:21,714 thanks for being here. Thank you for having 11 00:00:21,714 --> 00:00:23,494 me. It's great to be here in Chicago. 12 00:00:23,554 --> 00:00:25,634 Absolutely. It's great to have you. I wanna 13 00:00:25,634 --> 00:00:27,980 jump right in. I I did some research 14 00:00:28,120 --> 00:00:29,640 ahead of this podcast, and there's a lot 15 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:31,880 of data that shows operator moves are are 16 00:00:31,880 --> 00:00:34,520 really crucial revenue centers for hospitals right now 17 00:00:34,520 --> 00:00:37,000 and and contributing up to 70% of a 18 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:39,079 hospital's revenue and up to 40% of its 19 00:00:39,079 --> 00:00:41,179 expenses too, which is part of it. Right? 20 00:00:41,795 --> 00:00:44,034 Creating more efficiency and reducing delays is is 21 00:00:44,034 --> 00:00:46,594 really important there for for success. Where do 22 00:00:46,594 --> 00:00:49,875 you see the biggest productivity gaps today, and 23 00:00:49,875 --> 00:00:50,854 how are hospitals 24 00:00:51,315 --> 00:00:53,075 approaching them? Sure. As we look at the 25 00:00:53,075 --> 00:00:55,155 productivity gaps in the hospital's day, some of 26 00:00:55,155 --> 00:00:57,030 the big areas that we see with pristine 27 00:00:57,030 --> 00:00:59,689 specifically is in the reprocessing of the instruments. 28 00:00:59,909 --> 00:01:01,429 Thus, we've come out with a single use 29 00:01:01,429 --> 00:01:04,229 arthroscope as our first product that enables us 30 00:01:04,229 --> 00:01:05,829 to go into the case with a sterile 31 00:01:05,829 --> 00:01:08,709 packed instrument no longer needing to utilize the 32 00:01:08,709 --> 00:01:12,004 central processing department to process those instruments. Not 33 00:01:12,004 --> 00:01:13,284 only does that save on the amount of 34 00:01:13,284 --> 00:01:14,965 labor that's needed, but it allows for other 35 00:01:14,965 --> 00:01:15,465 procedures 36 00:01:15,765 --> 00:01:17,625 to come into that to facilitate 37 00:01:18,244 --> 00:01:18,744 those 38 00:01:19,045 --> 00:01:21,204 instruments to be cleaned and processed in a 39 00:01:21,204 --> 00:01:23,524 timely manner, allowing for more cases to be 40 00:01:23,524 --> 00:01:24,989 done at the end of the day. So 41 00:01:24,989 --> 00:01:27,629 you're also creating efficiency for staff, right, which 42 00:01:27,629 --> 00:01:28,849 is really, really key. 43 00:01:29,310 --> 00:01:31,950 What role in in this conversation, what role 44 00:01:31,950 --> 00:01:34,189 does the staffing overall play? What role do 45 00:01:34,189 --> 00:01:35,709 do the folks play that actually work in 46 00:01:35,709 --> 00:01:38,430 these environments? Sure. So there's actually multiple facets 47 00:01:38,430 --> 00:01:39,709 of the staff here. You know, the first 48 00:01:39,709 --> 00:01:41,444 is the central process. And because we're coming 49 00:01:41,444 --> 00:01:44,325 in as a sterile product already, we don't 50 00:01:44,325 --> 00:01:46,405 need to utilize that staff. So we simplify 51 00:01:46,405 --> 00:01:46,984 it there. 52 00:01:47,444 --> 00:01:48,805 That leads to the time in the OR 53 00:01:48,805 --> 00:01:50,325 where the staff doesn't need to wait for 54 00:01:50,325 --> 00:01:53,125 processing to happen. Between the cases, they don't 55 00:01:53,125 --> 00:01:54,405 have to wait for that stuff to be 56 00:01:54,405 --> 00:01:54,905 reprocessed 57 00:01:55,530 --> 00:01:57,290 to go on to the next case. It 58 00:01:57,290 --> 00:01:59,290 also is simplifying it because they simply have 59 00:01:59,290 --> 00:02:00,810 one sterile pack that they open. They can 60 00:02:00,810 --> 00:02:02,409 dispose of that. They don't have to go 61 00:02:02,409 --> 00:02:04,349 through multiple layers of Blu wrap, etcetera, 62 00:02:04,650 --> 00:02:06,030 creating to the waste that's 63 00:02:06,650 --> 00:02:08,864 assimilated with that. Yeah. Absolutely. 64 00:02:09,485 --> 00:02:11,185 We kicked off our conversation 65 00:02:11,805 --> 00:02:13,724 talking about cost, which is, again, it's a 66 00:02:13,724 --> 00:02:16,205 very important part of this conversation. Absolutely. Very, 67 00:02:16,205 --> 00:02:16,944 very important. 68 00:02:17,485 --> 00:02:20,044 Hundreds of thousands of dollars. Equipment costs are 69 00:02:20,044 --> 00:02:22,044 high. We're not even touching on the maintenance 70 00:02:22,044 --> 00:02:22,439 piece. 71 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:25,319 It has to be maintained as well. How 72 00:02:25,319 --> 00:02:26,379 are health systems 73 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:27,419 rethinking 74 00:02:27,879 --> 00:02:29,719 their investments right now? What are some of 75 00:02:29,719 --> 00:02:30,219 the 76 00:02:30,599 --> 00:02:33,719 strategies that you think leaders should emulate 77 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:36,780 leaders should look to to really strengthen this? 78 00:02:37,025 --> 00:02:39,025 Sure. In looking at the capital cost outlay, 79 00:02:39,025 --> 00:02:41,665 it is prohibitive in introducing new procedures into 80 00:02:41,665 --> 00:02:44,245 any place or to upgrading equipment that's there. 81 00:02:44,385 --> 00:02:46,465 With the pristine system, we're able to actually 82 00:02:46,465 --> 00:02:49,344 replace the current video system at no capital 83 00:02:49,344 --> 00:02:50,724 cost to the institution. 84 00:02:51,210 --> 00:02:53,370 So by doing that, they can then spend 85 00:02:53,370 --> 00:02:55,770 on a per case basis, which allows them 86 00:02:55,770 --> 00:02:58,090 to balance their budgets as their income is 87 00:02:58,090 --> 00:02:59,610 coming in as well. So it's all done 88 00:02:59,610 --> 00:03:00,750 on a per case basis 89 00:03:01,210 --> 00:03:03,290 by us placing that in there. They don't 90 00:03:03,290 --> 00:03:05,370 need to replace the expensive towers. You mentioned 91 00:03:05,370 --> 00:03:07,585 hundreds of thousands of dollars for an individual 92 00:03:07,805 --> 00:03:10,145 tower may cost a 100 to 150,000. 93 00:03:10,205 --> 00:03:12,444 If you've got a four center, surgery center, 94 00:03:12,444 --> 00:03:13,104 or hospital, 95 00:03:13,645 --> 00:03:15,485 it's half a million dollars. Adds up very 96 00:03:15,485 --> 00:03:17,344 quickly. And as you said, 97 00:03:17,645 --> 00:03:19,724 that doesn't include the service contacts or the 98 00:03:19,724 --> 00:03:21,245 maintenance that go along with it. With the 99 00:03:21,245 --> 00:03:23,250 single use, you know your cost. You can 100 00:03:23,250 --> 00:03:25,729 budget for that and plan accordingly throughout the 101 00:03:25,729 --> 00:03:27,430 high points and low points in the year 102 00:03:27,650 --> 00:03:29,969 meeting your demand. Yeah. Absolutely. There's a lot 103 00:03:29,969 --> 00:03:31,650 more as we started the conversation, a lot 104 00:03:31,650 --> 00:03:32,389 more efficiency, 105 00:03:32,930 --> 00:03:35,030 a lot more it's faster. It's easier. 106 00:03:35,764 --> 00:03:38,324 There is, however, this conversation around single use 107 00:03:38,324 --> 00:03:40,485 devices. Right? It's you're you're bringing something in. 108 00:03:40,485 --> 00:03:42,324 It gets used, and then we'll throw it 109 00:03:42,324 --> 00:03:43,525 out. It's it's done. 110 00:03:44,004 --> 00:03:46,824 There's there's this conversation about wastefulness, etcetera. 111 00:03:47,525 --> 00:03:48,504 From your perspective, 112 00:03:49,379 --> 00:03:50,360 how should leaders 113 00:03:51,060 --> 00:03:53,879 reframe that, especially when we think about sustainability? 114 00:03:54,180 --> 00:03:56,740 Right? And how can they and how can 115 00:03:56,740 --> 00:03:58,680 this process contribute to 116 00:03:59,300 --> 00:04:00,120 more responsible 117 00:04:00,419 --> 00:04:02,659 and and resilient practices? What's the role in 118 00:04:02,659 --> 00:04:04,324 all of this? Yeah. The critical thing is 119 00:04:04,324 --> 00:04:06,004 looking at the whole process that you go 120 00:04:06,004 --> 00:04:07,925 through to get this equipment ready to be 121 00:04:07,925 --> 00:04:09,605 utilized. If you look at it, you go 122 00:04:09,605 --> 00:04:10,824 into your central processing, 123 00:04:11,205 --> 00:04:12,885 they have the gowns and drapes that every 124 00:04:12,885 --> 00:04:15,284 individual there puts on in order to reprocess 125 00:04:15,284 --> 00:04:17,879 the equipment. They degloved, they regound. There's three 126 00:04:17,879 --> 00:04:19,660 to four sets that are actually utilized 127 00:04:19,960 --> 00:04:21,960 in the process of using these reusable art 128 00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:24,199 scopes. So as they do that, you actually 129 00:04:24,199 --> 00:04:25,980 accumulate about two and a half bags 130 00:04:26,439 --> 00:04:27,899 of non incinerable waste 131 00:04:28,235 --> 00:04:30,555 that goes through the process compared to the 132 00:04:30,555 --> 00:04:32,954 single device that we have, which is one 133 00:04:32,954 --> 00:04:36,495 sterile package, about six inches by 12 inches, 134 00:04:36,875 --> 00:04:38,875 that actually reduces the amount of waste that's 135 00:04:38,875 --> 00:04:40,810 going into the environment. On the back end 136 00:04:40,810 --> 00:04:42,330 of it, with the single use scope, we 137 00:04:42,330 --> 00:04:44,810 actually have a program with Sharps that the 138 00:04:44,810 --> 00:04:47,150 equipment will actually go into a reprocessing 139 00:04:47,850 --> 00:04:48,350 situation 140 00:04:48,730 --> 00:04:50,970 where they take all the rare earth minerals 141 00:04:50,970 --> 00:04:53,004 and they resell them back to industry. All 142 00:04:53,004 --> 00:04:55,404 the plastics actually get made into bricks. They 143 00:04:55,404 --> 00:04:57,725 then burn for energy. So we've looked at 144 00:04:57,725 --> 00:04:59,324 both sides of this to try and minimize 145 00:04:59,324 --> 00:05:01,564 the impact on the environment and improve the 146 00:05:01,564 --> 00:05:03,404 sustainability of what we compared to what we 147 00:05:03,404 --> 00:05:05,004 have today. So this is actually a really 148 00:05:05,004 --> 00:05:07,264 sustainable process. It what you just described. 149 00:05:07,569 --> 00:05:09,250 It is. And it's ironic because as we 150 00:05:09,250 --> 00:05:11,330 do this, everyone asks about the processes and 151 00:05:11,330 --> 00:05:12,610 then decide, well, how many of you are 152 00:05:12,610 --> 00:05:14,930 implementing this? And you see about 50% of 153 00:05:14,930 --> 00:05:16,930 the hospitals are actually implementing it, and they 154 00:05:16,930 --> 00:05:18,689 already have a blue bin there. So for 155 00:05:18,689 --> 00:05:20,449 us to fill in the gap there, it's 156 00:05:20,449 --> 00:05:21,985 just they can dispose of it in that 157 00:05:21,985 --> 00:05:23,584 blue bin, and it goes along with their 158 00:05:23,584 --> 00:05:26,084 already set of programs. Yeah. That's fantastic. 159 00:05:27,345 --> 00:05:28,884 We know that as humans, 160 00:05:29,185 --> 00:05:31,985 unfortunately, change is hard. We don't necessarily like 161 00:05:31,985 --> 00:05:34,224 to change. When something comes in new, it's 162 00:05:34,224 --> 00:05:36,224 tough. Right? Especially when we talk about workflows, 163 00:05:36,224 --> 00:05:36,629 we talk 164 00:05:39,430 --> 00:05:39,494 about staff, they have to adjust, etcetera. It's 165 00:05:39,494 --> 00:05:40,009 really, really key. 166 00:05:40,709 --> 00:05:42,889 What advice do you have for leaders 167 00:05:43,589 --> 00:05:46,790 working in new tools, working this process, in 168 00:05:46,790 --> 00:05:49,290 trying to get ahead of that change management 169 00:05:49,509 --> 00:05:50,009 piece? 170 00:05:50,389 --> 00:05:51,209 What strategies 171 00:05:51,915 --> 00:05:53,835 what advice do you have for leaders? The 172 00:05:53,835 --> 00:05:55,514 critical piece for us has been looking at 173 00:05:55,514 --> 00:05:57,435 all of the different players in this. You 174 00:05:57,435 --> 00:05:59,115 know, it is not just about the surgeons. 175 00:05:59,115 --> 00:06:01,194 It's not just about the administrative staff. It 176 00:06:01,194 --> 00:06:03,595 is about the central processing and the nurses 177 00:06:03,595 --> 00:06:05,990 and the physician's assistants that are working with 178 00:06:05,990 --> 00:06:08,310 the equipment and making sure that you've understood 179 00:06:08,310 --> 00:06:10,389 each of those players' role in this and 180 00:06:10,389 --> 00:06:11,829 how it plays. When we talk to our 181 00:06:11,829 --> 00:06:13,990 sales reps, reps are making sure that they 182 00:06:13,990 --> 00:06:16,664 go at three or four different levels to 183 00:06:16,664 --> 00:06:18,104 get the buy in of it. You know, 184 00:06:18,104 --> 00:06:19,625 when we go into the OR, it's very 185 00:06:19,625 --> 00:06:21,564 easy because we simply open a package. 186 00:06:22,024 --> 00:06:24,264 We plug in one single plug into our 187 00:06:24,264 --> 00:06:26,745 image processing unit, and the case is ready 188 00:06:26,745 --> 00:06:28,664 to start. The rest of it is the 189 00:06:28,664 --> 00:06:30,104 same as they are doing today in their 190 00:06:30,104 --> 00:06:31,625 current procedure. So there isn't a lot of 191 00:06:31,625 --> 00:06:33,680 training that goes along with it, but you 192 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,839 have to facilitate that with the nurses, with 193 00:06:35,839 --> 00:06:38,319 the surgeon, and all the different parties. It's 194 00:06:38,319 --> 00:06:40,879 also critical that we understand the full program 195 00:06:40,879 --> 00:06:42,259 from an economic standpoint. 196 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:44,399 If we only sell to the surgeon, then 197 00:06:44,399 --> 00:06:46,339 we're not understanding the economic standpoint. 198 00:06:46,800 --> 00:06:49,014 And they're saying, well, it's more per case 199 00:06:49,014 --> 00:06:51,014 that we're spending. Well, it isn't when you 200 00:06:51,014 --> 00:06:52,935 look at those things we mentioned earlier, the 201 00:06:52,935 --> 00:06:55,654 capital cost, the service cost, the repair cost 202 00:06:55,654 --> 00:06:57,254 that are going along with it. So the 203 00:06:57,254 --> 00:06:59,654 full complement of selling, understanding the different parties 204 00:06:59,654 --> 00:07:01,750 and their points in this and getting them 205 00:07:01,750 --> 00:07:04,150 aligned, we have certainly run into those situations 206 00:07:04,150 --> 00:07:06,150 where we haven't done a good job. We've 207 00:07:06,150 --> 00:07:08,230 had to go back and improve those for 208 00:07:08,230 --> 00:07:08,730 ourselves. 209 00:07:09,110 --> 00:07:11,270 But that's really where true partnership matters, I 210 00:07:11,270 --> 00:07:12,569 feel, like having conversations, 211 00:07:12,870 --> 00:07:13,770 being a partner, 212 00:07:14,125 --> 00:07:16,704 helping, and being invested in organization success. 213 00:07:17,084 --> 00:07:17,584 Absolutely. 214 00:07:17,964 --> 00:07:20,384 You know, our sales team is pretty in-depth 215 00:07:20,685 --> 00:07:22,365 at not only the OR side of it, 216 00:07:22,365 --> 00:07:25,004 but also the administrative side and understanding how 217 00:07:25,004 --> 00:07:27,345 the different groups will work together and balancing 218 00:07:27,404 --> 00:07:30,459 those for them. Them. Absolutely. John, so fantastic 219 00:07:30,459 --> 00:07:32,220 to have you. So many great insights. I've 220 00:07:32,220 --> 00:07:34,139 learned a lot, especially about sustainability. It's very, 221 00:07:34,139 --> 00:07:34,879 very interesting. 222 00:07:35,259 --> 00:07:36,459 I wanted to open it up for you. 223 00:07:36,459 --> 00:07:38,300 Anything else that you wanna share, with our 224 00:07:38,300 --> 00:07:39,819 audience? Anything else that you wanna add to 225 00:07:39,819 --> 00:07:40,480 our conversation? 226 00:07:40,805 --> 00:07:41,925 You know, I think it's great to see 227 00:07:41,925 --> 00:07:44,404 the movement towards the single use devices, looking 228 00:07:44,404 --> 00:07:46,264 at the patient health care and the simplifying, 229 00:07:46,805 --> 00:07:48,645 you know, or in this case, arthroscopy for 230 00:07:48,645 --> 00:07:50,964 us, but endoscopy as we grow larger. It's, 231 00:07:51,125 --> 00:07:52,564 it's great to be here at Becker's, and 232 00:07:52,564 --> 00:07:55,879 I appreciate the support. Absolutely. John, fantastic to 233 00:07:55,879 --> 00:07:57,560 have you. Thanks for being here. And we 234 00:07:57,560 --> 00:08:00,120 also want to thank our podcast sponsor, Pristine 235 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:02,279 Surgical. You can tune into more podcasts from 236 00:08:02,279 --> 00:08:04,520 Becker's Healthcare by visiting our podcast page at 237 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:06,939 beckershospitalreview.com.