Today's OR nurse
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1. A fire in the operating room can cause patient death, staff injuries, and costly equipment, facility, and legal damage for the hospital involved. 2. Taking precautions, both preoperatively and intraoperatively, can greatly reduce the risk of an OR fire. 3. The use of a flammability evaluation form--most appropriately filled out by an interdepartmental team consisting of nursing, surgery, and anesthesia department members--aids in the review and assessment of general fire risks and safety throughout the operating suite.
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During a typical work day, nurses encounter situations of grief, death, and crisis that increase vulnerability to crying. Because of the social and cultural bias against crying, nurses may try to control crying and may feel uncomfortable and embarrassed if unable to do so. ⋯ Crying may have a profound therapeutic effect in helping persons deal with overwhelming emotions. In selective situations, showing genuine emotion can be a meaningful way to provide emotional support.
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1. Crying has therapeutic value. For the patient and family, crying can facilitate working through grief, promote emotional healing, and release emotions that might otherwise lead to crippling emotional or physical illness. 2. ⋯ When patients cry, the behavior may express sadness and grief, release emotion, manipulate others, be a means to cope with unresolved stress, reduce distance, and may represent emotional lability related to organic brain impairment. 3. When the patient is crying, the nurse's action should be based on an assessment of the crying and the nursing strategies appropriate for the patient's unique situation. Generally, crying should be accepted nonjudgmentally and emotional support should be provided.
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1. To understand why and how a fire occurs, one needs to look at what is ignited, how it was ignited, and any other factors that may have changed either of these concepts. The three most common ignition sources are lasers, electric cautery equipment, and high intensity light cords. 2. ⋯ The best method of fighting a fire is to avoid having one. Emphasis should be placed on prevention. Every OR education program should include elements of a prefire plan that is consistent with the prefire plan for the institution.