1 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • M A Y 2 0 1 6
T
o prevent a cataract patient from moving his head during sur-
gery, you can either secure it with tape or have a staff member
hold it steady. But tape leaves a sticky residue and it's uncom-
fortable to hold someone's head. A better option: this vinyl-covered
foam headrest that one of our nurses designed. Take a block of soft
foam and cut a space out in the center where the patient can lay his
head. Cut one side higher than the other. Position the low-cut side
toward the surgeon, so he has access to the patient's eye. The high-cut
side prevents the patient from moving his head
away from the surgeon. Cover the headrest in
vinyl, so it's easy to clean between cases.
The patent-pending positioning device
works so well in our busy eye center
that we hardly ever use tape any-
more.
Homemade Headrest Keeps Cataract Patients Still
Ideas Work
P r a c t i c a l p e a r l s f r o m y o u r c o l l e a g u e s
That
Aggie
Roland,
RN
• STAY STILL This foam headrest
prevents patients from moving
their heads during
ophthalmic surgery.
Aggie Roland, RN
Aker Kasten Eye Center
Boca Raton, Fla.
aroland@akerkasten.com