time with the patient
after the procedure
instead of jumping
right into the next sur-
gery.
"That can be a really
big satisfier," says Mr.
Topp.
5. Soothing
sounds
Music has been shown
to relax surgical
patients (see "The Calm Before the Surgery" on page 46). When
patients at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago settle into
their pre-op beds, they receive disposable ear buds (theirs to keep if
they choose). Each pre-op bay is equipped with a computer monitor
that's hooked to an Internet music radio service. Music is a great way
to calm anxious patients before surgery. So as not to back up the OR
schedule, no music for the first patient of the day, says surgical servic-
es nurses Jessica Litrenta, BSN, RN, CNOR, and Rita Nelson, BSN,
RN, CNOR.
"A patient listens to a minimum of 10 minutes up to an hour of
music. So if they're significantly delayed, they're given something to
focus on," says Ms. Litrenta.
Literature reviews show support for instrumental music that has 60
to 80 beats per minute. Along those lines, patients only have 3 choices
of music: classical, spa-type or nature (wind chimes).
A U G U S T 2 0 1 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 6 7
• FAMILY FRIENDLY Mauricio Garrido, MD, clinical director of the Heart and
Vascular Institute at Abington Hospital – Jefferson Health in suburban Philadelphia,
takes a moment during surgery to update a patient's family members by
videoconferencing from a screen in the OR to a tablet in the waiting room.
Jefferson
Health
