A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Surgeons clearly don’t intend to cause stray energy burns when they cut and coagulate tissue with energy-based surgical...

What does safe surgical care mean to you? Eliminating avoidable adverse events by developing and maintaining competent teams...

Proper medication safety requires surgical leaders to ask some very tough questions. Are employees stealing drugs for consumption or resale? Did a staffer not dilute a drug...

A nurse suffers a serious back injury while trying to lift a patient without help. A patient falls during the transition from the OR to the PACU. Unfortunately, these issues happen...

Why don’t all healthcare facilities employ some sort of surgical smoke evacuation system? Not only does surgical smoke smell and obstruct the surgeon’s view of the...

All too often, misconceptions regarding the inherent safety risks associated with intraoperative fluoroscopy obscure a fundamental truth about C-arms: With the right...

Kathy Beydler, RN, MBA, CNOR, CASC, has seen her fair share of slips and trips in the OR — some resulting in significant injuries and missed work time — during her time as a...

Effective sharps safety is a multifaceted endeavor. It requires a holistic approach that incorporates mindfulness, effective communication, safety-engineered devices,...

Every time we send out a staff engagement survey, we include the following question: Does your manager have a safety-first mindset? The question may seem out of place on an engagement survey,...

Patient positioning aids range from simple gel pads to elaborate table attachments. However, there are certain common denominators you should consider when evaluating these vital products that prevent...

Transferring patients between stretchers and surgical tables presents plenty of challenges for members of the surgical team. Nurses and support staff are at risk of suffering muscular injuries caused by lifting...

Patients who are being prepped for surgery are often nervous and distracted with what’s going on around them. It’s important to ensure they comprehend and correctly confirm what’s noted on consent forms before...

Most people who make a mistake feel embarrassed, but often these experiences can be a valuable learning tool. In fact, sharing what could have gone wrong with colleagues helps them avoid similar missteps. That’s why staff...

Julie Moyle, RN, MSN, remembers the case well, even though it occurred more than 35 years ago. At the start of the AIDS epidemic, she was a surgical nurse at a hospital in...

Your staff must know how to immediately respond if a patient’s airway catches fire, surgical equipment starts to spark or flames erupt in the sterile field. It’s helpful to designate specific roles for each surgical team member...

While many facilities were shuttered during the pandemic’s first wave, OMNI Surgery Center’s quick action allowed surgeons to use the facility’s four operating rooms for urgent cases when former New York Governor...

The opportunity to start a surgical facility from scratch is a rare one for any healthcare provider, so when Brandy Ginzinger, RN, was named director of surgical services at UCF Lake Nona Medical Center in Orlando, Fla.,...

Test your knowledge about potential hazards — and how to eliminate them.

Last year marked the 20th anniversary of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act, landmark legislation that was intended to eliminate the sharps injuries that continue...

Brenda Ulmer, MN, RN, CNOR, and Angela Hohn, RN, BSN, BS, CNOR, have accomplished so much together that it’s almost impossible to believe that the two...