Throughout history, there has been a complicated relationship
between nurses and doctors. Some of the issues in the two relationships were influenced by factors such as power,
gender, and status. For ages, doctors disregarded nurses claiming that the
profession only attracted people who could not fit other professions. Such people comprised of vagrants,
immoral women, as well as criminals. As a result, doctors held undisputed and
omnipotent ranks in the clinical field. However, despite the differences,
nurses have proved to be of great help in the clinical area especially when it
comes to theatre. The purpose of this
paper is to discuss the relationship that exists between nursing and theatre. Besides, the essay will review and
examine the role of nurses in the surgical team.
Firstly, the role of nurses in theatre
is to test and inspect the medical tools required for the surgery. For example,
it is the duty of nurses to switch on the suction and diathermy in the theatre room and test them to make sure that
they are functioning properly. Additionally, they decontaminate the theatre in line with the trust policy, and they
line the bins with the plastic bags, they make sure that the operating tables
are working appropriately and lastly, they correct and set up the equipment and
furniture in the theatre (Campbell 12). Besides, nurses prepare and restock the supplies such as the
drapes, swabs, gowns, as well as other disposables that are usually needed. In
that line, they have to inspect the expiry dates of the supplies and the
sterility instruments. It is therefore evident that nurses form the backbone of
the theatre rooms in that without them, doctors will have had times, and they
may end up performing wrong procedures. Cleaning the
equipment preparing the theatre room is crucial since it promotes the safety of
the patients. Moreover, it is the legal duty of the nurses to ensure safe
environments for all patients. Through conducting regular checks before the
commencement of surgery in theatre rooms, nurses are exercising their duties of
preserving the safety of patients.
In the nursing professionals are taught to conduct surgical safety
worksheet. The world health organization requires that the surgical safety
checklist should be implemented in the theatre. Therefore, circulating nurses
should be in a position to comprehend the details of the manual so as to
conduct the checklist in every patient before surgery. Before surgery, the
anesthetist must first identify the patient with the operating practitioner
supposed to carry out the procedure. It is a major step which ensures that
doctors do not operate wrong patients. In theatre, nurses work in collaboration
to disclose the necessary information to the operation team to differentiate
possible problems (Campbell 30). If the information is not
delivered to the right people, there is a possibility of making errors
which may affect the safety of patients.
Nursing professionals carry out the duties of implementing
precautionary measures to control the infections. During the theatre
procedures, doctors use sharp instruments such as syringes, needles, broken
glasses, and scalpels. The tools should be disinfected and disposed in the
specified places. Therefore, nurses should have knowledge regarding the various
sharp disposal color coding since it’s their duty. Despite the fact that nurses
are not in direct contact with the sharps and the needles, they should be aware
of the necessary actions to be taken in case an inoculation injury occurs. In
addition, the circulating nurses should be able to identify the right waste
receptacle so as to perform appropriate segregation. Proper segregation is
essential in theatre since it prevents cross-contamination (Campbell 41). Circulating nurses
ensure safe disposal of waste in the theatre by providing appropriate
protective tools.
Nursing and theatre are related in that nurses must make sure that
the rooms are cleaned and disinfected for every patient. Nurses must ensure
that they keep theatre rooms to a minimum
so as to reduce the turbulence of air and the probability of contamination.
Besides, they ensure routine disinfecting
and cleaning of the theatre environment.
Cleaning and disinfecting is crucial
since it prevents infections resulting from surgical
aids. Furthermore, it safeguards the whole theatre
team from contacting infectious microorganisms. Therefore, before the procedure
starts, nurses should dust the room using the local
disinfectant that is approved. They are required to keep the contaminants in theatre to particular areas. For example, swabs
are supposed to be kept in plastic receptacles and be covered during collecting and handling (Campbell
132). Lastly, nurses are responsible for keeping
records that include the counting of sharps, instruments and the swabs. As part
of their professional duties, nurses are required to keep accurate and precise
records that are relevant to their practice and theatre.
They ensure proper and correct documentation in theatre.
Therefore, it is clear that nurses are important when it comes to theatre as they work hand in hand with other
workers to evaluate the whole team.
In summary, nurses play significant roles in theatre from the time patients enter and leave the theatre rooms. They work with the entire team
to ensure safety of the patients, safety
of the theatre, and the safety of rest of
the team members. Their contribution ranges from equipping and providing the
correct tools, implementing surgical
safety, and ensuring that infection control practices and procedures are followed correctly.
Work
Cited
Campbell, Morag H. Theatre
Routine: Modern Practical Nursing Series. Vol. 2. Elsevier, 2014.
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