Surgery can be an elective procedure or an emergency procedure that is done to save the patient’s life. During surgery, you want to practice as many safety procedures as possible to decrease the risk of an infection developing in the patient and to ensure that everyone in the operating room stays healthy.
Identification
One of the most important things to do regarding surgery safety is to make sure you’re operating on the correct patient. Each patient usually has a wristband that has the name and birthdate of the patient on it as well as the date of surgery and the name of the doctor. When doctors or nurses interact with the patient, they will usually ask the patient basic information that is then checked with the details on the chart and bracelet.
Making Marks
Another component of surgery safety is marking the area that will be operated on to ensure that there is no mistake made in the operating room. Most surgeons write their initials on the area or use one or two other letters so that they are clearly seen after the patient is taken to the operating room.
Communication
Surgeons will usually ask the patient about the procedure if there is time as there likely won’t be a lot of time for general conversation if the surgery is emergent. When the patient is in the operating room, the surgeon and other members of the medical team will communicate with each other about each person’s responsibility and where everything is located before the surgery begins.
Contact Sharp Fluidics for more information about staying safe before and during surgery.
