2 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6
The trouble with the surgical safety checklist is that it's easy to speed through the checkbox-
es rather than carry out the steps conscientiously. Here are innovative ways you and your team can
call attention to the importance of verification, site-marking and time outs every time.
• Hang reminders on IV bags. Patients shouldn't
receive pre-op sedation or leave pre-op until their surgi-
cal site has been properly marked. Remind your sur-
geons which patients are still waiting for their site to be
marked by hanging hard-to-miss signs on the IV poles
by their beds. Once the marking's done, you can double
down on safety by placing a brightly colored sticker
identifying the surgical site directly on the IV bag,
where everyone in the OR will be able to see it.
• Label regional block syringes. If your
anesthesia providers tape yellow "time out"
labels over the thumb inserts of their
syringes every time they prepare drugs for
regional blocks, they won't be able to oper-
ate the syringes or deliver the blocks until
they remove the labels. And removing the
labels will surely remind them to verify that
they're administering the injection to the
correct site.
Get Their Attention for Wrong-Site Prevention
Innovative
Ideas
Ideas That Work
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