What's your SOP when a 'foreign body' is found

Specialties Operating Room

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Specializes in MedSurg (Ortho), OR.

Hello all,

Just wondering what is your OR's standard operating procedure when an ex lap produces a 'foreign body'?

Thank you

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

Foreign bodies are listed in our pathology exception list, unless the surgeon wants it sent. Usually they are disposed of, or in certain cases returned to the patient/family. (We had a kid who swallowed mom's diamond ring- she got it back, but it was probably the most expensive ring she'd ever owned after paying for the endoscopy.) Exception being evidence collection (knives, bullets, etc), but those go to the police/security and not pathology.

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Specializes in PACU, OR.

Depends on what it is and whether they expected to find it... Bullets go to the police for forensics, instruments or swabs (eish) you document the find, retain the item as evidence and pray it didn't get there in your OR....

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Specializes in Trauma Surgery, Nursing Management.

Besides the above mentioned forensic evidence, if a foreign body is found on ex-lap, it is usually the surgeon's call regarding what to do with the FB. Some of our older surgeons do not want it being sent to pathology (the cost for the pathologist to say, "Yep, that's a nickel!" is about $500.) because the cost goes directly to the patient. Most of the surgeons will ask the patient if they want to keep the FB. A lot of times, it is just tossed.

Whadja find?

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Specializes in MedSurg (Ortho), OR.

Thank you all for the input, we found some BV1's in the bowel that we weren't expecting

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