O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 O U T P A T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T 3 5
P
atients
often
arrive at
your
facility in
the cool before dawn,
enter air-conditioned
pre-op rooms, strip
down to nothing, put on
paper-thin gowns and
slide between chilly
sheets and lie on cold,
hard operating tables. Is
it any wonder their core
body temperature might
quickly slip below 36°C
and have you playing
patient-warming catch-
up?
Maintaining normother-
mia demands applying
active warming measures as soon as possible, but
research suggests that up to 70% of surgical patients
Perfect Your
Patient Warming Protocols
It takes a total team effort to maintain
normothermia in patients from pre-op to the PACU.
WARM RECEPTION Cotton blankets
alone won't prevent the onset of hypother-
mia, but there's no denying that they
reduce anxiety and provide comfort.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
Kim York, BSN, MS, RN, CNOR, CSSM | Southport, N.C.