The wand reduces the variety of retained surgical items

Maimonides Medical Center has increased patient safety within the operating room by improving its protocols to make sure that no surgical components remain inside patients after surgery. A hospital in Brooklyn, New York, uses a radio frequency (RF) surgical detection system to complement the protection measures already in place during surgical procedures.

The idea to buy the system for the operating room got here from David Feldman, MD, chief safety officer and vice chairman of surgery, and Pam Mestel, RN, MSN, CNOR, executive director of perioperative services, said Alyssa Christie, RN, CNOR, team leader of surgery general, laparoscopy and geriatrics. “We have weekly educational activities and this was during the internship [Feldman and Mestel] presented the system,? Christie said. “They showed us how it was used and said they wanted to implement it with our manual counting.”

Christie said once staff were on board, company representatives arrived on site to coach nurses and staff on the way to use the system and helped them try it out.

Primarily utilized by circulating and hygiene nurses, this method operates on a comparatively easy process and is used along with manual counting. The Blair-Port Wand device ought to be waved over the incision site to detect the special micro-tagged cotton towels and sponges used during surgery. “The staff counts three times during the entire procedure?” the initial number before the beginning of the surgery, the ultimate number just before the tip of the surgery but before the skin is closed, and the ultimate number after the tip of the procedure? she said.

The RF surgical detection system consists of a self-calibrating console, a hand-held Blair-Port Wand device and cotton materials with RF microtags.

When the operation is sort of complete, the wand is first tested to make certain it’s working properly by waving it over one among the specially marked sponges. The staff waits for a beep and if every part is OK, the wand is waved over the incision site.

“The non-sterile circulating nurse turns on the generator and hands the sterile-wrapped wand to the nurse”? Christie said. When the wand is complete and no sound is heard, the surgeon continues to shut. Immediately after closing, the ultimate count takes place and the subsequent walk begins.

Like any latest procedure, moving into the groove of using the system got here with some challenges. “At first the staff treated it as just another step to take, but once we got over the learning curve it became routine.” Christie said. “It’s a step that takes so little time and really isn’t that invasive.”

The system is a component of Maimonides? rules and procedures in force within the operating room, and authorized personnel perform the rounds and document them within the intraoperative chart. “We use the system for all surgical procedures except cystoscopy and myringotomy procedures [ear tubes in children], percutaneous vascular procedures and hand and foot procedures. Or in cases where soft goods such as sponges, knee pads or towels are not used at all? Christie said.

The average cost of the system is $12 to $15 per surgical case. The cost is minimal considering the peace of mind it provides surgical staff. “Our goal is to prevent foreign body retention and this is the next step to help?” Christie said. “That in itself saves the hospital money.”

Maimonides is one among several centers participating within the study where the device improves surgery rates and staff confidence in wound closure. Preliminary results of the study, conducted by Chapel Hill, North Carolina-based UNC Healthcare, were presented at a recent meeting of the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress. Preliminary results showed that RF technology accelerates the identification of foreign bodies by reducing the usage of radiation to locate missing surgical components, and 90% of nursing staff reported that the technology reduced stress during wound closure and increased confidence that no surgical resources were left within the patient.

Maimonides has been using the system since December 2009 as a complement to the safety procedures already in place. “We decided to do this knowing how important it is to prevent retention of surgical components.” Christie said. “We found this additional safety measure to be worth the extra expense.”