better as a means of continual improvement.
"It could be something as simple as having a tech draw up a local
medication earlier to improve speed and accuracy," says Cmdr.
Conrardy. "Or it could be calling for the patient earlier because anes-
thesia needs to do an extra block, which can increase the room time."
In addition, key members of the perioperative team participate in a
daily briefing to go over the day's cases and scout for any "specific
areas of anticipation," as Lt. Naranjo calls them — positioning, prep-
ping and any other "nitty-gritty details." The circulating nurse takes
notes during the briefing and posts them on a whiteboard in the OR.
Clearly, when Lt. Naranjo raised her voice, she also raised her OR
team's awareness of situations that could cause surgical errors. That,
in turn, has yielded some tangible results. The facility hasn't had any
wrong-site surgeries — or even any near misses — since.
OSM
5 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
SURGICAL
ERRORS
