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 • A P R I L 2 0 1 8
If you still have one nurse holding a clipboard while she records
counts, I encourage you to switch to a whiteboard that's visible to the
entire OR. To make your counting boards more efficient, standardize
the format of the boards. We use dye-cut letters across the top of the
board for staff to note the counts of sponges, instruments and tools.
Then on the bottom, we note specific information like patient's ini-
tials, allergies, procedure and surgeon. By making it all uniform,
everybody in the OR knows exactly where to look to get the informa-
tion they need.
OSM
4. Use count boards,
not clipboards