More than 50% of older surgical patients are thought to have malnutrition that is associated with increased postoperative complications, prolonged length of hospitalization and increased health care cost.The surgical patient is at a nutrition and fluid disadvantage...
Reducing muscle tension is an important part of self-care for all healthcare professionals, especially OR nurses. Perioperative nurses often strain muscles in three stress-prone areas: back, shoulders and neck. In keeping with our own company’s long-term commitment...
The “Time Out” The “time out” is one part of the Universal Protocol developed by the Joint Commission to prevent wrong-site, wrong-procedure, and wrong-person surgery. Each are considered never events by the National Quality Forum and sentinel events by the Joint...
An Action Products blog devoted to mind and body self-care strategies for those on their feet all day. Nursing is hard on the feet. Your feet take a pounding while you are standing or racing in and out of the O.R. or supply room. Fortunately, your feet are amazing...
This is the final installment of a three-part series that we created to provide nurses with the resources they need to educate and better prepare themselves to deal with bullying and violence in the workplace.“While the American Nurses Association provides vital...
For individuals with physical disabilities receiving care at home, preventing pressure injuries (also known as pressure ulcers or bedsores) is not just important, it’s critical to maintaining health, comfort, and independence. As Susan Lipton Garber noted in the...
Distractions and interruptions occur frequently in the operating room and procedural suites. They can negatively impact patient safety, care coordination, and efficiency by causing errors and patient harm. Distraction and interruptions in the OR and procedural suites...
In the last blog we talked about compassion fatigue which is the emotional residue or strain of exposure to working with those suffering from the consequences of traumatic events. It differs slightly from burnout but can co-exist. Compassion Fatigue can occur due to...
Maintaining a calm, compassionate attitude is a vital nursing skill. Many perioperative nurses will tell you that this can be quite challenging with so many fires to put out during a shift. What to do to keep calm and carry on? Here are some simple yoga moves to...
Nursing shortages, burnout and compassion fatigue require nurses to practice self-care. Compassion Fatigue can occur with exposure to one case or can be due to a “cumulative” level of trauma. Compassion fatigue develops over time, taking weeks, sometimes years to...
