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O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4 | S U P P L E M E N T T O O U T P AT 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
If you have a patient who is susceptible to MH and is undergoing outpatient sur-
gery, discharge on the day of surgery can be anticipated if the anesthetic was
uneventful.
But it's important to monitor the patient closely after surgery, even if the pro-
cedure went smoothly. It's recommended that you monitor patients for 1 hour in
phase I recovery, including the monitoring of vital signs at least every 15 min-
utes. Following that, an additional hour of close monitoring in phase II recovery
is recommended before discharging patients to home.
MH deaths may be prevented with ________.
a.
proper preoperative screening
b.
education and preparation
c.
identification of individuals at risk
d.
all of the above
Answer
: d
One of the key ways MH deaths have dropped in recent years is through early
detection. When a patient is identified as at risk for MH, it's much easier to
ensure they don't have an episode during surgery. Keep your staff educated on
the latest care guidelines and up to date with regular practice drills on what to
do in the event of an emergency. All of these steps, when combined, will help
save lives.
OSM
Ms. Clifford (
tclifford@a spa n.org
) is a nurse liaison for special projects for the
American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses. She also works full time as a nurse manag-
er of surgical services at Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine.
M A L I G N A N T H Y P E R T H E R M I A
