First Case

11/14/2025

✨ 𝗙𝘂𝗻 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗯𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿

If you’ve worked in the operating room for any length of time, chances are that you've used a Hibbs retractor. But have you ever wondered where it came from or how it got its name?

Dr. Russell A. Hibbs (1869–1932) was a Kentucky-born orthopedic surgeon whose work helped shape early spine surgery. Historical analyses of surgical instruments note that the Hibbs retractor was designed for inter-laminar exposure, supporting the evolving techniques of spine fusion.

Around 1911, Hibbs introduced one of the earliest successful spinal fusion procedures for patients with tuberculosis of the spine (Pott’s disease), a groundbreaking advancement in care. Although the exact year he introduced the instrument isn’t documented, published reviews confirm that the retractor emerged from this innovative period in his surgical practice.

So whenever you use a Hibbs retractor, remember that it carries a legacy of surgical innovation that began more than a century ago.

11/12/2025

Happy Perioperative Nurses Week!

Have you ever wondered how this week of celebration came about? Find out in today's blog!

https://educate.beyondclean.net/4nNKZiw

11/11/2025

11/10/2025

🎧 https://educate.beyondclean.net/49Nbp0u 🎧// We’ve all heard it: “Nothing to eat or drink after midnight.” But what if that long-standing rule isn’t the best thing for our patients? 🤔

In this week’s episode of First Case, we sit down with Lisa Spruce, Senior Director of Evidence-Based Perioperative Practice at AORN, to challenge one of the most ingrained habits in surgical care.

Together, we'll walk through the research behind Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols, which are evidence-based practices designed to optimize patients before, during, and after surgery. From preoperative nutrition to multimodal pain management and early mobility, ERAS is helping teams across the country reduce complications, shorten recovery times, and improve outcomes.

Tune in to learn:
✅ Why strict NPO after midnight is outdated
✅ How ERAS protocols enhance safety and satisfaction
✅ Practical steps for implementing evidence-based change in your facility

Tune in to learn and together we can move past an old idea and implement evidence-based practices!

11/07/2025

𝗙𝘂𝗻 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗯𝗯 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿

Dr. John Robert Cobb (1903–1967), an orthopedic surgeon at the Hospital for the Ruptured and Crippled in New York City (now the Hospital for Special Surgery), is best known for developing the Cobb angle, the standard measurement for evaluating spinal curvature in scoliosis. But his contributions extended beyond diagnosis.

During the 1930s, as spinal surgery techniques evolved, Dr. Cobb recognized the need for a reliable instrument to elevate the periosteum and paraspinal muscles from bone while maintaining control and minimizing tissue trauma. To solve this challenge, he designed the Cobb Elevator, a simple, balanced tool that allowed for controlled, effective subperiosteal dissection.

This new instrument quickly became a standard tool in spine and orthopedic procedures. And now, nearly a century later, the Cobb Elevator remains an essential part of our surgcal instrument trays and surgical practice.

11/06/2025

Behind every product on the shelf is a rigorous process of evaluation, collaboration, and clinical reasoning led by value analysis professionals. From balancing patient safety to managing supply chain and cost, these decisions are anything but simple.

🎧 Listen to the full conversation with Joe Chua as we unpack how healthcare teams work together to ensure the right products reach the right patients at the right time.

https://educate.beyondclean.net/4hFARap

11/05/2025

Ever wonder how lessons from the operating room can apply outside of medicine? 🤔 On a recent flight, a casual chat with a flight attendant revealed just how much the worlds of surgery and aviation have in common, from temperature control to safety checklists.

Read the full story on how First Case is reaching new audiences beyond the OR walls! https://educate.beyondclean.net/3JbNX2r

11/03/2025

🎧 https://educate.beyondclean.net/4ohQMOv 🎧 // Behind every product on the OR shelf is a story of collaboration, evaluation, and evidence-based decision-making, not just a surgeon’s request.

This week we sit down with Joe Chua, OR Nurse and Value Analysis Professional from Dallas, Texas, to unpack the complex process of how surgical products make it from idea to implementation.

Together, we'll explore the intersection of clinical practice and supply chain strategy, the importance of communication between teams, and the critical role of value analysis in supporting patient safety and financial stewardship.

If you’ve ever wondered how product decisions are really made in healthcare, you won’t want to miss this conversation.

10/31/2025

Hoping you get all the treats and none of the tricks today!

10/30/2025

In this week’s episode of First Case, we cleared up one of the most persistent myths in the OR — that surgical technologists work under the nurse’s license. As Angel Pickett explained, surgical technologists operate under the supervision and delegation of the surgeon, not the RN.

This conversation sheds light on how clearly defined scopes of practice support collaboration, communication, and patient safety in the operating room.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://educate.beyondclean.net/43zcTYr

10/27/2025

🎧 https://educate.beyondclean.net/47HWP9d 🎧 // A long-standing myth in the operating room continues to circulate is that surgical technologists work under the license of the OR nurse. In this week’s episode of First Case, we’re setting the record straight.

Tune in as we speak with Angel Pickett, Surgical Technology Program Director at Connecticut State Community College, Gateway Campus. Together, we'll explore:

✔️The education, training, and certification requirements for surgical technologists
✔️The true scope of practice and delegation under surgeon supervision
✔️How clear understanding of roles strengthens collaboration and teamwork in the OR

This insightful conversation challenges misconceptions, promotes professional respect, and highlights how every member of the surgical team contributes to patient safety and excellence in care.

Don't miss it!

10/24/2025

🩺 Fun Fact Friday: The Story Behind the Bookwalter Retractor

If you've worked in the OR for any length of time, you've heard of the Bookwalter. But behind the name engraved on that retractor ring was a surgeon with an inventive spirit, Dr. John R. Bookwalter, a man whose curiosity and creativity helped reshape surgical retraction and surgical care.

Dr. Bookwalter was born in Ohio in 1938. Both his grandfather and his father were physicians, and his mother was a nurse, and their influence along with an early exposure to paitent care, led him to pursue medicine as well. After graduating cm laude from Amherst College and earning his M.D. from Harvard Medical School, Dr. Bookwalter served his country as a surgeon in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, eventually rising to the rank of Colonel in the Army Reserve.

It was in the operating room that inspiration struck. Long surgeries required assistants to manually hold retractors for hours, which was not only exhausting, but could be imprecise. Dr. Bookwalter saw a better way. In the 1970s, he began developing a table-mounted retraction system that could free the assistant’s hands ad provide consistent exposure and visibility.

In 1979, the first Bookwalter Retractor System was introduced, and it quickly became an essential tool in open surgery. For more than four decades, its innovative design has stood the test of time, used in operating rooms around the world.

Dr. Bookwalter often said, “Good exposure is the key to good surgery.” His invention made that principle a reality, transforming how surgeons approach complex cases and ensuring better outcomes for patients everywhere.

Dr. Bookwalter passed away peacefully on May 2, 2025, but his legacy lives on in operating rooms around the world.