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P A I N
C O N T R O L
• The right equipment. Outfit your facility with block trays, which include sterile gloves, gauze, skin markers, a ruler, cleansing agents, syringes of several sizes, local anesthetic, block solutions and insulated nerve stimulator needles if your providers use the nerve stimulator technique. You'll also need well-equipped supply carts stocked appropriately with airway equipment and emergency drugs. Finally, invest in the gold standard of block placement: Ultrasound, the imaging modality that guides and confirms correct needle placement. Our ultrasound units are mounted on roller carts, which are configured to the providers' preferences.
— William Landess, CRNA, JD
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in this patient population. In any application of regional anesthesia, no matter the patient's age, always prepare for airway rescue or transition to another anesthetic technique in the event blocks fail or prove inadequate. OSM
Mr. Landess (william.landess@palmettohealth.org) is director of anesthesia at Palmetto Health in Columbia, S.C.
