on deck during a crisis," says Cristina Smith, BSN, RN, CPAN, the cen-
ter's manager of same day services. "Any staff member who's here
needs to know how to help when an emergency — any emergency —
arises." Here's how she makes sure they're ready when pulses quicken
and seconds count.
• Realistic drills. The center uses incredibly realistic emergency
response drills involving the health system's simulation manikins to
help prepare staff members for the unexpected, whatever it might
be. "The drills create mindfulness of how to recognize emergencies
and what to do when they occur," she explains.
During the simulations, staff members know something will go
wrong, but they don't know what the emergency will be. That element
4 0 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 6
A focus on patient safety is part of
the culture at North Country
Hospital in Newport, Vt. The surgi-
cal services department continu-
ously looks for ways to better pro-
tect patients through education ini-
tiatives, tabletop discussions and emergency response simulations.
They recently performed a malignant hyperthermia education session,
which included an AORN video tutorial, a scavenger hunt through the
MH cart, a practice session for mixing dantrolene, a review of the
duties involved in an MH crisis and the creation of "task" cards for
quick reference during an emergency response. The hospital's leader-
ship video recorded the drill and then critiqued it as a group with the
staff involved to come up with constructive ways to make the team's
performance even better.
• COOL CUSTOMERS The staff at North Country Hospital is expert in malignant hyperther-
mia response.
VIDEO REPLAY
Make MH Drills Count
North
Country
Hospital
Awards Issue
