Background: Although it has been shown that perioperative protocols enhance arthroplasty care and safety, it isnot known how prevalent their use is in safety net hospitals, which operate with a mandate to treat the poor andunderserved. Understanding the elements currently included in standard perioperative arthroplasty protocols at variousinstitutions may help guide future interventions and pol...

BACKGROUND In health care, most preventable adverse events occur in the operating room. Surgical safety checklists have become a standard of care for safe operating room practice, but there is conflicting evidence for the effectiveness of checklists to improve perioperative outcomes in some populations. Our objective was to determine whether surgical safety checklists are associated with a redu...

Prevention of percutaneous sharps injuries in perioperative settings remains a challenge. Occupational transmission of bloodborne pathogens, not only from patients to health care providers but also from health care providers to patients, is a significant concern. Legislation and position statements geared toward ensuring the safety of patients and health care workers have not resulted in signif...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Despite the benefits of rapidly advancing therapeutic and diagnostic possibilities, the perioperative setting still exposes patients to significant risks of adverse events and harm. Anesthesiologists are in midstream of perioperative care and can make significant contributions to patient safety and patient outcomes. This article reviews recent research results outlining the cu...

Lasers used in the OR pose many risks to both patients and personnel. AORN's "Recommended practices for laser safety in perioperative practice settings" identifies the potential hazards associated with laser use, such as eye damage and fire- and smoke-related injuries. The practice recommendations are intended to be used as a guide for establishing best practices in the workplace and to give pe...

A 2012 survey of AORN members identified the top 10 safety issues reported by perioperative nurses. These nurses are in a unique position to understand the errors and the unreported near misses that occur in the OR. For each of the top-rated safety issues that RNs identified, we discuss the evidence of risk and contributing factors and make targeted recommendations for further improvement in pe...

n engl j med 361;19 nejm.org november 5, 2009 1910 the differences between these observational data sets might provide insights to further refine endoscopic-harvesting techniques. We look forward to seeing these data published in the peer-reviewed literature. Our analysis has identified an important potential area for quality improvement in cardiac surgery, and further observational and randomi...

references: 1. miller rd. miller’s anesthesia. 7th ed. philadelphia: churchill livingstone 2010 2758-9. 2. macintyre pe, schug sa, scott da, visser ej, walker sm. apm:se working group of the australian and new zealand college of anaesthetists and faculty of pain medicine. acute pain management: scientific evidence. 3rd ed. melbourne: anzca & fpm 2010 9-12. 3. buvanendran a. chronic postsurgical...