During the AORN 2019 conference in Nashville, Cardinal Health officially launched its new CoolSource Cooling System, a disposable, wearable cooling solution that reduces heat-related stress and distractions in the OR. Healthcare Purchasing News had an opportunity to attend an educational session on the subject, meet the inventor of CoolSource, and see a demo.
The event began with Rosie Squeo, RN, BSN, MA, Senior Consultant, Cardinal Health, leading a booth education session titled “The impact of heat stress on OR clinicians,” for a large gathering of perioperative nurses. Many in attendance nodded approvingly in response to the experiences Squeo shared about her time working in the OR, sweating profusely beneath the heavy layers of personal protective equipment she was required to wear.
However, it’s not only nurses who feel drained and exhausted from working long hours in high temperatures, the surgeons feel it too and those who work in the OR know that when the doc isn’t happy, nobody is happy. “Comfort is correlated with job satisfaction,” Sqeo said, noting how heat stress can affect cognition, and that the chronic stress response can have long-term physiological effects.
CoolSource inventor Jill Byrne, MSN, RN, CNOR, and PhD student at Case Western Reserve University says she worked in an Obstetrics/OR setting for 17 years, switched to an ambulatory health center and returned to the OR some years later, when PPE was made with a new generation of barrier fabrics – hotter ones – and what she encountered as a result wasn’t good. “There was a whole different level of mood and incivility that I hadn’t seen earlier,” Bryne said. “The tone set by the surgeon in the lead role was very solemn, everyone on the team worked very well together, but the discomfort from the heat definitely overshadowed the possibility of a lighter mood or any enjoyment in the setting. The surgeon – a world renowned hip surgeon in Ohio – was miserable.”
Six months later Byrne, who was already proficient at sewing, came up with an idea to develop a vest that could hold cooling devices and be worn in the OR to keep staff cool and comfortable during surgical procedures. She gave a sample to the surgeon and within a short time she said life in the OR had changed demonstrably.“Normally, when he broke scrubs, he would be soaked. I made the vest for him and this time he was completely dry,”said Byrne. “Ever since then he hasn’t done one surgery without wearing it. A once silent man with an intimidating stare over the tops of his glasses, was now singing songs and speaking with the staff around him.”
For five or six years, Byrne said she made vests for everyone in the OR until Cardinal Health acquired the product, which she says has gone through five iterations since development. Bryne is also happy to say the company continues to keep her involved. “[Cardinal Health] kept my passion, they want to keep people healthy.”
Emily Gallo, vice president of Marketing for Surgical Products says, “Cardinal Health is proud to partner with such an innovative OR nurse to bring a much-needed solution to OR clinicians. Through conversations with customers and advisory boards, Cardinal Health learned that heat in the OR is a wide-spread and largely unaddressed pain point. We are excited to now offer a practical solution that can have a positive impact on staff’s well-being and performance.”
Gallo told HPN that demand for the vest was strong right out of the gate. “We did a controlled launch and 15 health systems had an immediate interest – we saw demand generating right away,” she said.
Valerie J. Dimond | Managing Editor
Valerie J. Dimond was previously Managing Editor of Healthcare Purchasing News.
