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D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 5 | O U T P A T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T
P
re-op calls go
a long way
toward
addressing clinical
concerns and eliminat-
ing potential delays,
but displaying the
information you gath-
er in a place where all
your providers can see
it improves patient care and efficiency. At our hospital, the nurses
who make pre-op calls follow a checklist of detailed questions —
including what medications the patient is taking, whether they've
undergone surgery before, if they've experienced difficulties with IV
starts, if they remember which anesthetics they received, whether
they've suffered post-op nausea and
vomiting, and so on — and note the
responses on a single-page form that's
attached to the front of the chart and
that travels with the patient throughout the perioperative process.
That way, everyone along the way knows the patient's needs and his-
tory without having to dig through the chart. Having to page through
the chart to find out what kind of care is necessary can delay your
progress, but a preparation sheet can do the digging for you.
James Babeshoff, CRNA, MSN
Galesburg (Ill.) Cottage Hospital
jimbob@prestontel.com
Download the
Patient Chart Cover Sheet at
outpatientsurgery.net/forms.
A N S W E R S H E E T
Try This Handy Cover Sheet for Your Charts
James
Babeshoff,
CRNA,
MSN
z ON THE SAME PAGE A cover sheet outside the patient
charts serves as a clear executive summary for all caregivers.
