3. ID all sites. Note sites that can't be
marked — many ENT procedures, such as
tonsillectomy, for example — on patient
wristbands. You might already have a wristband system in place to alert the care team
to patients with allergies, so maintain the
SPOT CHECK Implement regular observation to ensure the
surgical team performs effective time outs every single time.
visual cue that everyone's familiar with. (Just make sure the site-alert bands are in a different color.) The idea is to heighten awareness to ensure all procedures and sites are
identified — regardless of whether they can be marked.
Buy-in and barriers
The Joint Commission developed a Targeted Solutions Tool (TST) for wrong-site surgery
J A N U A R Y 2013 | S U P P L E M E N T
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