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Use of a Novel Memory Aid to Educate Perioperative Team Members on Proper Patient Positioning Technique
Author(s) -
Woodfin Kaitlen O.,
Johnson Corey,
Parker Renee,
Mikach Caroline,
Johnson Molly,
McMullan Susan P.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
aorn journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.222
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 1878-0369
pISSN - 0001-2092
DOI - 10.1002/aorn.12075
Subject(s) - mnemonic , accidental , medicine , perioperative nursing , perioperative , surgical team , medical emergency , patient safety , surgery , psychology , health care , physics , acoustics , economics , cognitive psychology , economic growth
Abstract Interdisciplinary collaboration is key to safe surgical positioning. Although the surgical procedure dictates the patient's position, surgeons, anesthesia care providers, intraoperative nurses, and ancillary staff members must work together to achieve the goal of safe positioning. Correct patient positioning includes the provision of adequate access to the surgical site for the surgeon and surgical assistants. Surgical positions may put the patient at risk of injury. Understanding human anatomy, including the nerves commonly affected by each surgical position, can help the surgical team prevent accidental and irreversible patient injury. A lack of knowledge of proper positioning practices can result in serious patient injury, such as permanent paralysis, blindness, tissue necrosis, burns, bone fracture, and even death. This article reviews surgical positioning and introduces a learning module that involves the use of mnemonics as memory aids for perioperative team members who are learning proper positioning techniques.