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fainting in the OR were just a few. "They were all great, and
according to our staff surveys, they loved them and felt the teach-
ing was effective," says the center's COO Cathy Dentremont, RN,
MBA.
• A really realistic drill. MEDARVA
Stony Point Surgery Center (SPSC) in
Richmond, Va., decided to really spice
up one of its patient safety drills earlier
this year. Caleb Cox, SPSC's director of
business development and physician
network. That live person was Shane
Stanford, MSN, SPSC's director of clini-
cal services. Mr. Stanford, who had splashed water on his face and
hair to make it look like he was sweating, casually walked up to a
nurse in the surgery center's PACU and said, "I'm having chest
pain and need you to help me. I think I'm having a heart attack."
The nurse followed protocol and checklists, laid him on a stretch-
er and began following the typical procedure for a code blue.
After the code call went over the intercom, Mr. Stanford
informed the nurse and her team that this was a drill, but they
were to continue on as if it were real. The staff followed detailed
tasks when responding to the code. The entire test took about 45
minutes. "Training in our surgery centers needs to be as realistic
as possible," says MEDARVA Healthcare CEO Bruce Kupper.
"When a real person is the focus of training, it changes the envi-
ronment. If you can train using simulations as close to reality as
possible, it leaves a stronger impression on your staff and is more
meaningful." — Joe Paone
• LEAD ACTOR Shane Stanford, MSN, (sec-
ond from left), plays an active role in prepar-
ing his staff for any type of emergency.