Priority Patient Safety Issues Identified by Perioperative Nurses

TLDR

Perioperative nurses focus on patient safety and recognize that unreported near misses occur daily, guiding their prioritization of protective activities. This study aimed to identify the highest priority patient safety issues reported by perioperative registered nurses. An anonymous electronic survey was sent to all AORN members with email addresses, asking respondents to list their top perioperative patient safety concerns. From 3,137 usable responses, the top ten safety issues were identified—wrong site/procedure/patient surgery, retained surgical items, medication errors, instrument reprocessing failures, pressure injuries, specimen management errors, surgical fires, perioperative hypothermia, burns from energy devices, and difficult intubation/airway emergencies—varying by practice setting and informing future education and resource allocation.

Abstract

Abstract Much of the work done by perioperative nurses focuses on patient safety. Perioperative nurses are aware that unreported near misses occur every day, and they use that knowledge to prioritize activities to protect the patient. The purpose of this study was to identify the highest priority patient safety issues reported by perioperative RNs. We sent a link to an anonymous electronic survey to all AORN members who had e‐mail addresses in AORN's member database. The survey asked respondents to identify top perioperative patient safety issues. We received 3,137 usable responses and identified the 10 highest priority safety issues, including wrong site/procedure/patient surgery, retained surgical items, medication errors, failures in instrument reprocessing, pressure injuries, specimen management errors, surgical fires, perioperative hypothermia, burns from energy devices, and difficult intubation/airway emergencies. Differences were found among practice settings. The information from this study can be used to inform the development of educational programs and the allocation of resources to enhance safe perioperative patient care.