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IDEAS That Work
3:00 TIMER
Ensure Prep Dry Time
1 6
O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | S E P T E M B E R 2013
Heather Schimmers, RN, BSN
W
COUNTDOWN Director of Surgical Services Heather
aiting the 3
Schimmers, RN, BSN, and OR Manager Mike Nigl, RN, BSN.
minutes it
takes for
most alcohol-based
skin preps to dry can
seem like an eternity
to an anxious surgeon
who's ready to drape
the patient and begin
the case. To ensure
that our preps have
enough time to dry, we've
placed a store-bought
timer in each OR —
they're magnetically
attached to our whiteboards. We set the timers
for 3 minutes. We prep the
patient, start the timer and
then perform the time out.
The rule is that you can't drape the patient until
the timer goes off. This way, a surgeon can't
pressure us into starting the case early.
Heather Schimmers, RN, BSN
Mercy Medical Center
Oshkosh, Wisc.
hschimme@affinityhealth.org
