Preop Interview

You can always make a little cheat sheet for yourself. Most of the nurses I work with have an entire "cheat book" that has checklists for setting up the room, surgeon preferences, patient interviewing, and calling report, along with others.

My patient interview goes like this:

-Introduce myself as the nurse taking care of them in the OR; let them know I'm asking repeat questions because I need to hear the answers directly from them.

-Verify name and date of birth with wristband.

-Confirm surgeon and procedure that they say they are having matches the consent, and that site marking has occurred.

-Ask about allergies, specifically mentioning iodine, betadine, and latex.

-Ask about metal implants (electrocautery grounding pad placement issues).

-Ask about jewelry/dentures/glasses/contact lenses/anything else that can be removed.

-Confirm NPO status.

-Verify that anesthesia has talked to them and gotten consent.

-Explain what happens when we get to the OR- moving over to the OR bed, hooking up monitors, etc.

-Make sure family knows the way out to the waiting room, have them say their "see you laters" (never goodbyes) and head out.

Then, I call the room to let them know it's safe or not safe to open supplies with latex, and take the patient to the OR.

Give it time, soon it will feel like second nature.