Canadian operating room nursing journal
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Apprehension about oral communication, or public speaking is rated as the number one fear among most individuals. Developing skill in, and comfort with, public speaking is important whether we are presenting oral reports and proposals, responding to questions, or training co-workers. Effective speakers are able to communicate information in a way that stimulates interest, helps the audience to understand and remember, and influences attitudes and behaviours. ⋯ In truth most successful speakers work hard and invest a great deal of time and effort in to improving their speaking capabilities. Effective public speaking is a learned skill and activity that requires lots of practice. Like other learned skills, having a strategy with clear action steps can help you achieve your goal.
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The current social trend towards personal esthetics has come into conflict with safe perioperative care practices. While artificial nails have become very popular they pose a significant risk to patients. Surgical personnel who scrub while wearing artificial nails are putting their patients at higher risk for post-surgical wound infection. ⋯ We cannot rely on surgical gloves to always contain these hand organisms. There are reported cases where artificial nails have been the cause of post-surgical infections and even death. OR personnel who scrub should not wear artificial nails.
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Can Oper Room Nurs J · Dec 2001
Computerized O.R. scheduling: is it an accurate predictor of surgical time?
The goal of this project was to determine whether a standardized surgical time, generated by the Operating Room Information System (ORIS), could be used as an accurate predictor of actual surgical time. Utilizing retrospective, quantitative data from the ORIS database, frequency distributions by surgical speciality, were completed. ⋯ The study outcome indicates that ORIS computer generated procedure times were not an accurate predictor of actual surgical time. Further follow-up will be required to determine if alternate scheduling methodologies would lead to higher accuracy rates.
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The use of securement devices to prevent the risks, discomfort and expense of accidental dislodgment of surgical drains was investigated by the Royal Columbian Hospital after nursing staff began reporting a previously unrecognized post-operative pain syndrome. Nursing staff discovered the cause and eliminated the recurring syndrome by taking two preventative measures: securing urinary catheters with a Statlock securement device, and hanging the catheter bags to the OR stable. Both practice changes eliminated traction on the catheter, preventing its migration into the patient's bladder neck that caused the syndrome's symptoms of bladder pain and spasm when the patient woke up. There were modifications to the chest tube securement protocol that also included a Statlock securement device that improved the skin integrity of patients and increased nursing application efficiencies by 100%.
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Perioperative educators mostly conduct orientation, in service and continuing education to perioperative staff. Their role can be expanded to improve the quality and efficiency of perioperative care. To this end, an organizational communication model can be used to identify weaknesses and guide intervention. To be effective with this approach, perioperative educators have to work closely with perioperative managers.