Abstract
The management of swabs, needles and instruments in the operating theatre is a high-risk and problem-prone area for the operating theatre nurse. The purpose of this research is to formulate specific standards on the management of swabs, needles and instruments in the operating theatre to ensure the safety of the patient. An exploratory and descriptive research design was used and executed in 3 hospitals of a private hospital group in Gauteng. A structured two phase process was followed, i.e. the development phase and the validation phase. This last phase was done by means of deliberate debate. It is recommended that these standards be implemented, tested and validated on a national basis and a monitoring and evaluation system should be developed to ensure nursing compliance with these standards.
Highlights
The operating theatre nurse is professionally-ethically responsible for establishing and maintaining a safe and therapeutic environment during surgical interventions in the operating theatre
A theatre forum was established within the group made up of nursing service managers and operating theatre unit managers and through the endeavour of this dynamic group it was decided to implement this new method of swab control
Semi-structured purposeful debates were held to clarify certain issues pertaining to staff and whether the new method of swab, needle and instrument management was acceptable to the theatre nurses
Summary
The operating theatre nurse is professionally-ethically responsible for establishing and maintaining a safe and therapeutic environment during surgical interventions in the operating theatre. The instrument count is recorded in a similar fashion to the swab count Needles, such as Mayo’s are counted audibly by the scrub nurse and check nurse and the number should be recorded on the board. They are kept in a gallipot on the trolley when not in use. The original scrub nurse and check nurse must complete a full count of all the instruments and swabs and record the information. Semi-structured purposeful debates were held to clarify certain issues pertaining to staff and whether the new method of swab, needle and instrument management was acceptable to the theatre nurses. The final stage o f v alid atio n lies in the testing and im plementation of the standards before national validation can be done
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