View from the Technicians’ Seat: Three Surgical Techs Share Their Experience with ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner

As we celebrate 2 million cases performed with ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner, the editors at ZEISS VERACITY Tip of the Month wanted to hear from surgical technicians, the connective tissue of the OR whose dedication to excellence empowers surgeons to maximize their potential.

Changes to routine are adopted smoothly when staff buy into the promised benefits of a given technology. As these technicians illustrate, ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner is a welcome addition to surgical workflows. Take it from these techs: ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner flattens the learning curve for new hires, streamlines schedules, and helps you attract talented staff. 

By Sarah Bladholm, Surgical Technician, Carolina Eyecare Physicians

I joined Carolina Eyecare Physicians (CEP) as a new technician shortly after Kerry Solomon, MD, adopted ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner as the centralized organizational structure for his practice. The CEP on-boarding team familiarized me with the physical requirements of my job: how to operate devices, my responsibilities regarding patient workups, and how to navigate daily routines so I could contribute to the practice’s clinical workflow.

Over time, this same staff would have taught me the science underpinning each step our team took, allowing me to deeply understand my role in the clinic. Luckily for me (and for my peers tasked with educating me), ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner served as a digital tutor during my training. In acting like a staff member occasionally whispering coaching tips in my ear, ZEISS VERACITY encouraged me along my training. It might, for example, invite me to focus on verifying a specific metric or to link concepts I’d learned during my training. Without ZEISS VERACITY, it would have taken me significantly longer to get up to speed.

If you lead a growing surgical practice with an expanding staff roster, ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner could be a tool that accelerates staff members’ trainings and confidence. It worked for me—and maybe it can work for your team, too. 

By Molly Verner, Surgical Technician and Scribe, Carolina Eyecare Physicians

As a team lead at a high-volume surgical clinic whose career started in the era before ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner, I remember when patients needed to come back to the clinic for re-capture of biometric data for any number of reasons. This inefficient means of running a practice disrupted the predictable workflow we technicians rely on.

Now that ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner has arrived, trained staff have an opportunity to assess whether any biometric data must be reconciled during the presurgical period. If indeed a patient needs to be remeasured, then the patient can do so immediately rather than days later when the staff notices the need to repeat testing.

This means that practices using ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner have improved clinical workflow, as patients no longer re-present to the clinic for a problem that could have been solved on the day of initial data capture. It also means that patients’ lives aren’t disrupted with pesky unexpected appointments. Thus, patients and technicians have clearer, more predictable schedules. As the lead tech in a busy clinic, this means the staff I oversee are more efficient. 

By Susie Pace, Surgical Technician, Advanced Vision Care

Prior to joining Advanced Vision Care in Los Angeles to work with Nicole Fram, MD, I was a surgical technician at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, as part of Dr. Brandon Ayres’ team. Dr. Ayres and Dr. Fram both use ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner, and when I began working with Dr. Fram, I felt like a lifelong friend moved surgical practices with me.

This meant that my onboarding process was significantly shortened—after all, I didn’t need to learn a new interface or a new organizational philosophy, as both surgical practices centered ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner as a data hub. This was important when joining a high-volume surgical practice: It meant that I immediately supported the surgeon who hired me and was an asset who contributed rather than a trainee with questions at every turn.

When I heard that Dr. Fram centered her OR around ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner, I conferred quickly what type of practice I would soon be a part of. Sure enough, my familiarity with both the interface and philosophy of ZEISS VERACITY eased my transition to Dr. Fram’s clinic, which mean that the staff leads spent more time focused on patient care and surgeon support than on showing me the ropes. 

^{The statements of the author reflect only his personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any institution with whom he is affiliated.
The author has a contractual or other financial relationship with Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc. and has received financial support.}