Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Manager's Guide to Staff & Patient Safety - October 2016

Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.

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2 4 S U P P L E M E N T T O O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O C T O B E R 2 0 1 6 M arking the site of the surgical incision before the induction of anesthesia is the surest way to prevent wrong-site sur- gery, but only if it's done — many facilities have adopted a "no-mark, no-surgery" policy — and only if it's done prop- erly. Surgical site marking is not a time for individual expression or to draw cutesy symbols and squiggly lines — those marks will only confuse the surgical team when they're confirming where to cut. Your surgeons and staff need to agree on a standardized approach and use it to mark each and every patient. Outpatient Surgery Magazine photographer Pamela Bevelhymer, RN, BSN, photographed 8 examples of site marking done correctly … and some scenarios that can cause confusion and lead to errors. OSM Marking the Site Right There are lots of ways to do it wrong, but only a couple of ways to do it right. Photo Essay by Pamela Bevelhymer, RN, BSN CRYSTAL CLEAR There are only a few simple rules to follow. First, the surgeon should use his initials (unless they're NO) or the word YES as the surgical mark. Second, place the mark as close as anatomically possible to the incision site using a single-use surgical skin marker. Third, have the surgeon mark the site before the patient enters the OR.

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