Hmm it will be difficult to montor and anesthetize the patient without technology. But that won't really matter, since most surgeries require technology (Bovie, laparoscopy, etc.). Even the OR lights are technology, so I guess they'll be operating by candle light and coldsteel only. And I guess the OR nurses won't have to do their excessive computer charting anymore.
Another well thought out policy. It represents a clear risk to patient safety.
Cell phones and pagers are "technology" that is required for communication. Physicians need to be immediately accessible for communication all of the time that they're working or on call. The end. They probably generated this as they view it as an unnecessary infection risk.
Have your department safety officer handle this as a safety requirement. It's not reasonable for the PACU, floor nurses, ER, etc to try to guess which OR the staff is in. They need to call or page. When YOU need someone NOW, you don't page them, you call them, or call overhead (if they're in the OR complex).
If you don't have a department safety officer use the risk management person. This is why you need one. You need a midcareer/senior staff in that role to fight this kind of BS that clearly introduces barriers and decreases patient safety.
Do you have a computer with Internet access in your workspace (side table, on machine for computer orders/charting, etc)? If not, you should have access to one, and not the one nursing needs to endlessly chart either. We have 3 in every OR and several COWs floating around. Sometimes you need to hit the Internet to look up records, rads studies, etc. Rare diseases, journal articles, etc. It's not optional, it's part of the job.
It's also stupid to try to limit access to technology at a teaching facility. These days you can have lectures, article PDFs, etc right there on your iPad for teaching/education purposes. If you're at a teaching hospital, this poorly thought out policy directly interferes with one of the core missions of the hospital.
