M A R C H 2 0 1 7 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 9
T
he last thing
conscious
sedation
patients want to
hear is "we have a
high fire risk." A
surgeon challenged
us to come with a
way to address fire
safety during pre-op
time outs that
wouldn't alarm
patients who are
already anxious. We
used to say the risk of fire is low, medium or high, or rate it on a scale
of 1 to 10. Now we discuss specific risk factors involved in the case,
such as giving the alcohol-based prep enough time to dry and stop-
ping supplemental oxygen before we cauterize. Drilling down to those
details informs members of the team to be aware of every potential
fire risk without stressing out the patient.
Gina Hartman, RN
Rockford (Ill.) Ambulatory Surgery Center
ghartman@rockfordambulatory.com
Talk Fire Safety When Patients Are Listening
• SPARE THE DETAILS Patients don't want to hear that the fire risk is "high" during their procedures.